What If
by morning sun
Summary: What if Naomi Misora had lived? Would she have been able to prevent L's death? A look at what could have been. LxNaomi, First Death Note fic, CONTAINS MAJOR SPOILERS! Summary of the book Another Note in first chapter…
1. Chapter 1, So it Starts

_**Authors note:**_

No, I do not usually do long authors note's at the beginning of a chapter, therefore this is impertinent to the story. You wont see a AN like this in front of a chapter ever again, I promise!! Anyway, I just finished reading the book _Another Note_, and it gave me the idea to do an LxNaomi story.

So, here are some things you should know before continuing this fic.

First off, almost all of the contents in this chapter are true. By true I mean yes, they are fiction, but in the world of Death Note this is fact. There is a book, almost a "prequel" to the Death Note manga and anime series that is called, _Death Note: Another Note. The Los Angeles BB Murder Cases._ It is by Nisiosin, and it's narrated by Mello. :)

I want to incorporate some of the themes from the book _Another_ _Note_ in this story, so here's a quick summary for those of you that haven't read it.

_**xxx**_

**Brief summary of **_**Another Note**_**:**

The story is about Naomi Misora and her time with 'L' on the case of a serial killer that was called 'B'. His name was Beyond Birthday. Basically, Naomi is approached by L (through e-mail and phone) to help him on the BB murder cases. Since she had been suspended temporarily from the FBI, and has time on her hands, she accepts. While looking for clues at the first victim's home, she finds a man calling himself Ryuzaki hiding under the bed. As a reader, you think this is L. He acts like L, and is described as looking like L. He uses the alias Ryuzaki, L's alias during the Kira case.

Naomi calls L and tells him about the man, and L tells her to keep an eye on him, and to let him help her on the case. You think he's talking about himself. L on the phone is the** real** L (so all phone conversations between L and Naomi mentioned below are _actually_ L), and Ryuzaki is actually the serial killer, B. You don't find all of this out until the end of the book.

All very confusing, but please, keep reading.

So its real, I didn't make it all up in my head, Another Note says that this happened in the timeline of the Death Note series, two years before the Kira case. Now, as far as Naomi Misora living after her initial confrontation with Light…that _is_ fiction.

Everything in italics is taken directly from the book, word for word. That isn't mine. Hell, none of this is really mine. I don't own Death Note (in case you didn't know). Which is sad, because if I did, L never would have died. :(

This first chapter is going to help you understand parts of the first book, _Another Note_, and set you up for the rest of my tale. Its invaluable information so please don't skip ahead, even if you have read Another Note. If you have not read it, you should.

Enjoy, and e-mail me if you have a question about the finer details, or something I may have missed.

_**xxx**_

_**Chapter One, So it Starts**_

B never wanted to become L. In fact B, whose real name was Beyond Birthday, didn't even want there to be an L.

He wanted there to be only B.

B was a serial killer.

…Or was he?

It was all a game to him, a way to get L. A way to surpass L. He'd been at Whammy's House, raised there. He'd been one of L's successors. They'd been trying to make prototypes of the real L, little copies that would never be as great as the real man. So that when L died, someone could take his place.

'A' had committed suicide under the pressure of it all.

And B had gone crazy.

But B was a special case. You see, B was born with Shinigami eyes. He had no Death Note, and no one knew why he'd been born with the eyes of a Death God, not even B himself. All B knew was that when he looked at someone he saw their name, their real name, and the amount of time they had left to live.

So he was not a serial killer.

All of his victims were supposed to die the day he had killed them, one way or another. The victims, Believe Bridesmaid, Quarter Queen, and Backyard Bottomslash would all have died whether he had murdered them or not. But L did not know this, so by making it look as though these people were sadistically killed, B could get L's attention.

This was the way B challenged L.

L was said never to get involved in a case unless there were more than ten victims or a million dollars at stake. Beyond Birthday had killed three people. Brutal and vicious deaths, yes, but there were only three. And there was certainly no Million dollars at stake.

The Los Angels BB Murder Cases. The LABB.

L.A.B.B.

L is After Beyond Birthday.

B had left clues. Clues so hard to figure out that only a genius like himself and L could solve them. Crosswords and Wara Ningyo dolls (voodoo dolls in America), and small hints that were almost not hints at all. Almost.

B wanted not to become L, but to surpass him. He wanted to be B. He wanted there to be no L, only B.

B, the world's best.

B, the detective who outsmarted L.

And he _almost_ had.

He had impersonated L in a way that only one who had met him could. Dark hair, dark circles under the eyes, tall but hunch backed. Even mannerisms that he'd been taught to copy at Whammy's House. Odd behavior, like crawling on all fours at a crime scene. A different way of talking, using a lot of "hmmm…" and "Yes, but why?" Eating an entire jar of Jam with his fingers, and drinking his coffee sweet enough that the spoon would probably stand straight up in the middle of the cup from all the sugar.

And B, Beyond Birthday, had introduced himself to Naomi as Rue Ryuzaki.

But Naomi Misora had never met the real L. Even on the BB murder cases she had only ever talked to L on the phone, through a secured line. So when she met the "un-private detective" that called himself Rue Ryuzaki, she had no idea he was impersonating L. She had no idea that this was B, the serial killer, the man she was after. She thought he was there to help her solve the case. He was brilliant yes, but almost certainly insane.

B had thought of everything. He'd calculated all of L's moves, right down to when L had hired Naomi to help him with the investigation. He was going to defeat L, and he would do it by killing himself. He would guide Naomi along, help her figure out the clues he'd left at the crime scenes, and then when it was all said and done, he'd kill himself in a way that looked like murder.

It made sense to no one but B, who truly believed that this was the way to defeat and conquer L. He would become the fourth victim, even though L had said that there would be no more deaths now that he was on the case.

He would prove L wrong.

But B, while not underestimating L, had greatly underestimated Naomi Misora. He had not thought her smart enough to figure it out. But she had. She'd arrested B, this "Rue Ryuzaki". She had solved the puzzle.

She'd gotten to B just as he had lit himself on fire. She had extinguished the flames and then slapped hand cuffs onto his burnt wrists.

"_Rue Ryuzaki, I arrest you on suspicion of the murders of Believe Bridesmaid, Quarter Queen, and Backyard Bottomslash. You do not have the right to remain silent, you do not have the right to an attorney, and you do not have the right to a fair trial." _

And that had been it. Beyond Birthday was arrested. He was alive. He lost. He lost because he _knew_.

He had said to Naomi, _"And you are trained in capoeira, right?"_

He'd made a mistake.

And it had clicked a few hours later with Naomi that the only two people that knew about her ability in capoeira (a self defense/fighting method) during this case was L, and a man she had used it on. A man who had attacked her in an alleyway, who had been wearing a mask, just days earlier.

When she had told L of the attack, over phone conversation of course, he had been concerned.

"_Naomi Misora, do take all precautions for your own safety. You are the only person who can work for me on this case. If you fall, there is no one who can replace you." _

_He must be referring to the fight in the alley. She was caught off guard by this. No one who could replace her? For L it might be a very casual pronouncement, or just an outright lie, but Misora found it hard to believe it was even being applied to her. _

"_Don't worry. I wasn't hurt." _

"_No-I mean, take care not to place yourself in a situation in which you might be attacked. Avoid back roads, alleys, and other deserted areas. It might take longer, but stick to crowded areas and busy streets." _

"_I'm fine, L. And I can take care of myself. I've trained in martial arts." _

"_Have you? In what? Karate? Or judo?" _

"_Capoeira." _

"…"

Naomi had felt pride that she caused L to not know how to respond. Although, she knew it was an unusual choice of fighting for an FBI agent.

"_Yeah, I thought it was crap till I actually started it, but I got involved in street dancing in college and joined a capoeira group as an extension of that. It's actually a really effective form of self defense for a woman. The basic techniques all involve dodging your opponent's attacks, which means it isn't possible to overpower a block like it is in karate or judo. We can never match a man for power. And the acrobatic, tricky movements in capoeira give you time to get a good look at your assailant." _

"_Really? That makes sense," L said, sounding impressed. _

_Genuinely impressed, not just saying so. _

"_Your description makes it sound interesting. If I have time, I will have to look at some videos… but however confident you are, if they have a gun, or outnumber you, the situation changes. Take all the precautions you can." _

Ryuzaki had let it slip that he knew, and since he couldn't be L (L would never make such a mistake in any event), he was the attacker. He was B.

_And a few years after his arrest, on January 21, 2004, serving a life sentence in a California prison, Beyond Birthday died of a mysterious heart attack._

If Kira had known who he was killing, a man with the Shinigami eyes, he surely would not have done this.

But before that, on September 1st only a week after the BB case had been solved, Naomi met the real L.

Not the fake, not the imposter "Ryuzaki". Not B.

She met L.

She was on her way back to work at the FBI, getting ready to enter the subway. She had been put on probation in these last weeks (one of the reasons she'd been able to help L with the BB case) because she had not been able to fire her gun at a 13 year old boy who had been part of a large crime ring. It had upset her, and it had made her question her job and her ability. Even her boyfriend, Raye Penber, had timidly told her that perhaps this was a good reason for her to quit the force. But L had set her straight. L had told her over the phone that:

"_Justice had more power than anything else."_

"_Power? By power… you mean strength?" _

"_No. I mean kindness." _

And that had helped. L was not only a great detective, he was a great man. He'd hired her to help him on this case not because she was available, and not only because she was able, but because she possessed kindness. She possessed the ability to help a person change, and to show kindness.

So when she saw him, not really knowing who she was seeing, she was struck with deja vu.

_Like she had met him once before. _

_There was something about him that reminded her of Ryuzaki- of Beyond Birthday. But the resemblance was backward, like this was the original, and the other had been the copy. _

"_Um, have we…?" she asked, even though he was hardly blocking the entrance bodily, and she could have simply ignored him and walked on inside. _

_The young man instantly leapt at her. _

_Leapt at her? No, that's not right. He actually tried to throw his arms around her. _

"_Huh?! No!" _

Misora had brushed off the man's embrace and had moved smoothly into a capoeira offence, spinning in the air, raising her back legs like a scorpion, and slamming her heels onto his shoulders. Hard.

He'd been knocked off balance and had crashed down the subway stairs.

_Whoops. A little overboard. _

_Certainly, he had assaulted her, but Misora quickly righted herself and ran down after him. _

"_Are you okay?" she asked. _

_He was lying on his stomach like a crushed frog. _

"_I see," he muttered, seemingly talking to himself. "Watching videos and seeing it for real is quite something different, but now I think I understand." _

"_Hunh?" _

_What was he talking about? Had he hit his head on something? Her first day back at work, and already she was in trouble…_

"_Um… can you stand?" Misora said, reaching out toward him. _

_The man looked up at her, his eyes in shadow, as if two holes were staring at her. _

"_Thank you," he said, and took her hand. _

_Misora pulled him upright. _

"_Are you injured? Does it hurt anywhere?" _

"_I'm fine, thank you," the man said, not letting go of her hand. Even on his feet, he did not attempt to move away. _

_They appeared to be shaking hands. Like warriors on the battle field, exchanging a firm handshake after surviving yet another bloody fight. _

"_You are very kind," he said, with something like a smile, and at last let go of her hand. Then he tottered away as if nothing at all had happened, slowly climbing the stairs again. _

"_Ah…w-wait! Just a second!" _

_Misora had almost let him go, but a moment later she ran after him, circling around in front of him again. She was an FBI agent and could not let an assault crime go unpunished. The young man was sucking his thumb. He did not appear to be at all nervous. _

"_If you aren't hurt, then you'll have to come with me. Sexual assault is a serious crime. You can't go around throwing your arms around women. What were you thinking?" _

"…"

"_Don't just stand there. Say something. This attitude won't make things easier for you. What's your name?" _

_Naomi Misora has asked his name. _

_The young man nodded. _

_And answered. _

"_Please call me Ryuzaki," he said, unperturbed. _

_Just like someone else had. _

_**xxx**_

It was then that L had taken another alias. He had many names, and this was one more he was to use. Rue Ryuzaki. Not his real name, no, but what a number of people ended up calling him. A name he had taken from Beyond Birthday. A name that L felt he deserved to take on, now that he had beaten B.

He'd left Naomi standing there, eyes wide in shock. Who was this man? He looked like Ryuzaki, like Beyond Birthday, but he seemed more real, more genuine. Like B had been impersonating _this_ man.

And he'd said, _"Watching videos and seeing it for real is quite something different, but now I think I understand." _

What did that mean? Was he talking about her capoeira?

"_You are very kind," _he'd said.

Could he be…?

No, he could not be L! But…but…

Ryuzaki turned to look at her one last time and smiled, both hand fisted deep into his pockets.

"Please, if you are to ever be undercover, do not use your real name under any circumstance."

Then he was gone.

And why had he said that?

_**xxx**_

It was two years later now, and Naomi was in Japan, hunting down her fiancé's murderer.

Hunting down Kira.

She looked up into the face of Light Yagami.

"Um, would you mind telling me your name?" He asked, smiling good naturedly down at her.

And Naomi Misora remembered…

"_Please, if you are to ever be undercover, do not use your real name under any circumstance." _

"I'm Shoko Maki."

_**xxx**_

_**Authors Note:**_ Whew! Ok, that was hard, trying to explain the damn book. The book was confusing.

L takes the name Ryuzaki because he has defeated the "real" Ryuzaki (B), and feels that he deserves to use this alias now. He has done the same with 2 other detectives.

Anyway, everything above actually happened in the book _until the last 2 paragraphs._ L never tells Naomi to use a fake name if she goes undercover. I added that for my own purpose. And since you know from the summary that this is a "What if Naomi had lived" story, you know that that statement may have helped her in her decision to tell Light a fake name, and to actually stick with it. But all will be unfolded in the next chapter. :)

My favorite part, my favorite exert from the book _Another Note_ (and I will quote it for your pleasure), is when Mello say's in the forward; _There's also the chance that Kira might read this… and I really hope he does. If these notes tell the murderer, who only got by with the help of a supernatural killing notebook and an idiot of a shinigami, that he was, under any other circumstances, not even worth the dirt beneath L's shoes, then they have served their purpose._

I'm not a fan of Light, so that's just beautiful to me. He's not worth the dirt people! Maybe I'll have Naomi say something to that effect later on. :)

Please review, constructive criticism is appreciated. Sorry if it was kind of hard understanding the summary of the book _Another_ _Note, _but I wanted to use it later on, and I wanted people to know what the hell I was talking about. The story will be able to progress with a more natural flow now. Hope you're interested! And please be kind to me, this is my first Death Note fic!

_**xxx **_


	2. Chapter 2, Changing Events

_Authors Note:_ Let's not forget that Naomi still doesn't believe that she's met L. Part of her thinks it, but she'd rather keep on believing that the man she met in the subway was not L to keep her life simpler… ;)

_**Chapter Two: Changing Events. **_

_**xxx**_

Ryuzaki stared out of his hotel window at the Imperial Hotel, in the Kanto region close to Tokyo.

The five NPA agents, Detective Superintendent Yagami-San, Matsuda-San, Aizawa-San, Ukita-San, and Mogi-San, would on their way to meet him tomorrow. But for now, Ryuzaki was alone, and the great detectives' brain began doing circles.

'_If I could just get one more clue…'_ he though, stuffing his fists deep into his jean pockets.

'_Something to clinch it… Maybe I'm being too impatient…' _

He shook his head just slightly, as if he were rejecting the idea almost as soon as the thought had come to him. He was staring out at the night sky without really seeing anything at all.

'_No. If we let him get away now…I just need one clue.' _

He paced a bit, his long toes curling into the carpet.

'_One clue.' _

He stopped then, his wide eyes focusing in the distance and a humming in the back of his throat. He brought his right hand up and began lightly gnawing on the tip of his thumb.

"Just one clue…"

_**xxx **_

Naomi Misora stared into the seemingly innocent face of Light Yagami, the Detective Superintendents son, and couldn't help but feel that there was something not right about him. He was too nice, too helpful.

Too perfect.

But she had always been told that she was too negative for her own good. Even Raye had said it… but God did it hurt to think of him now. She couldn't believe that he was gone. He was here to meet her parents, they were going to get married soon…

Kira.

Kira had done this. There was absolutely no doubt in her mind that this had been part of some kind of elaborate plan for Kira to get information. And she'd tried to warn Raye. She'd told him that the bus-jacking had been too much of a coincidence.

So if Light Yagami could help her…

But it bothered her, when they were at the NPA building, the way he hadn't remembered the name of the man at the reception desk. He'd said, "All the reception people look the same to me," as if he were above him.

Then, when the enthusiastic man had boasted about the boy's detective skills, Light Yagami had seemed almost pleased to hear it; she could practically see his ego inflating as the man raved at the boy's genius.

Subsequently, the reception clerk had asked, "So, are you trying to solve the Kira case too, Light?"

And Light had responded, "Sure am. If I'm on the right track, I may be able to beat L to it."

_**Beat L?! **_

Naomi knew L. She wouldn't say they were good friend, but they had been work associates for a small amount of time. And even though she had never met him in person (or if she had, she chose not to believe it) anyone who thought they could _**beat**__**L**_ was delusional.

But he was asking her to sit with him now, and he was the Superintendents son. Maybe he could help her? Perhaps there was a way for him to get her in touch with the Director, or maybe even L himself. Although, she though that was wishful thinking on her part.

"The way I figure it, Kira had greater powers than we think," Light said, leaning his body forward so that his elbows were resting on his knees.

"…"

This caught Naomi by surprise. It was the reason she was here at the NPA building. She knew that Kira could kill other ways than a heart attack. And this boy had apparently come to the same conclusion.

"… I've noticed that too. That's why I'm here…"

Her face had turned serious, and she'd looked down at her feet in determined resolve. If she had looked up, however, she may have seen the surprise on Light's face.

He went on for a moment at how amazing it was that she had noticed the same thing, and then he'd suggested that they walk outside, away from the building.

Away from the cameras?

But again, perhaps she was being paranoid. This kid was probably seventeen or eighteen. She was Twenty-six, and even though she didn't look it, she could take care of herself. Besides, he was the Superintendents son! And there was good reason for no one to know that they were having a discussion about Kira, in the NPA building or not.

Light took a deep breath, as if he were about to tell her something very important.

"The way I see it, Kira-" Then he stopped and looked over at her, his eyes full of benevolence and just a bit of misgiving.

"Um, would you mind telling me your name?" He asked, a smile on his face that seemed authentic. "I'm Light Yagami. You write the Kanji for "moon" and read it Light- unusual isn't it? And Yagami is written with the Kanji for "night" and God""

"I'm Shoko Maki. The "Sho" is the Kanji for "Shine," and "Ko" is "Child." Maki is written with the Kanji for "Between" and "Tree.""

God she was good. She'd fed him that crap only half revised. Kira had to know his victims names, which reminded her of another killer she had once dealt with. And even though it seemed highly unlikely that this kid was Kira, she felt better safe than sorry.

They walked on, and Naomi found it odd that he was so calm at times. As though some of the things she was telling Light didn't surprise him at all.

There were other times though, like when she told him that she thought Kira had met an FBI agent that had been following him, that Light seemed temporarily dumbstruck. He'd just stood there in the middle of the sidewalk, his eyes wide as he watched her turn and ask, "What's the matter?"

He'd said he was shocked because she'd told him that the man she though had met Kira was her dead fiancé. But he'd looked not only shocked and surprised… but _scared_. Naomi had seen fear run momentarily across his features. Odd.

"Eight days after the bus jacking, my fiancé and 11 of his colleagues all died. And during those eight days, more than 20 people with some link to crime, including petty criminals, died in Tokyo of heart attacks." Her back was turned to him, which was probably a mistake.

"But after the FBI agents died," she continued, "This spate of deaths abruptly stopped… My fiancé… and the convenience store robber… and the busjacker…"

She paused, taking a deep breath. "Were all used by Kira in order to murder the FBI agents in Japan. I'm convinced of it."

She turned to look at Light. "The convenience store robber could have been used as practice for the busjacker's death…"

She'd told him about how Raye (she had called him her fiancé, not using his real name) had shown his ID to someone on the bus. She'd told him that Raye hadn't had any other choice. That he was on a Top-Secret mission, which was unknown to the Japanese Police, and that he was under strict orders not to tell anyone, or to show anyone his ID. She'd told him how Raye had only told her about how he'd shown his ID to a passenger on the bus under the strictest confidence, and that she had promised him she would not to tell anyone.

"That's why I'm convinced he was the one who tipped Kira off to the presence of the FBI in Japan…"

The reason those 11 other agents were dead.

She was talking too much.

"So you're saying that Kira made the criminal hijack the bus to get your fiancé to reveal his identity…" Light looked pensive, like the wheels in his head were turning over her words to him…

But really…

'_If this information reaches the police, it won't take them long to figure out that Light Yagami is Kira… SHE HAS TO BE ELIMINATED!'_

Light made a big show of telling her he believed her. Then he pulled out a piece of paper…

And nothing happened.

Shoko Maki did not die of suicide. 11:15 came and went.

"They will catch Kira, wont they?" Naomi asked, suddenly warming up to Light. He was helping her, they were going to solve this case. Raye's death, his murder, would be avenged. Perhaps she'd been overly wary of him? He did seem genuine about wanting to help her.

Light suddenly realized, through the onslaught on Ryuk's _"Hyuks,"_ that Shoko Maki was an alias.

She had given him a _fake_ _name_.

He tried not to panic, even though he realized that they were now walking back to the NPA.

'_She's got her purse on her. She's got to have a driver's license or some kind of ID on her!'_

His eyes narrowed as she walked ahead of him.

'… _She's a woman. If I have to, I can use force.' _

"Do you need to go back to the NPA too? Because I'll be fine on my own."

"…Oh… Of course."

She thanked him for his help, and she was walking away. He had to figure out her name in five minutes.

And he was running out of time.

He approached her. And he lied through his teeth. He told her that she couldn't speak to a task force member directly, that they were using a new system to keep the members a secret. She'd bought it. He'd watched her spirits sink when he told her that no matter how many times she made her way to the NPA building, she'd never get the chance to speak with someone. And when she'd asked why he'd known so much…

"Because I'm a member of the task force myself."

She was the shocked one then, her eyes widening at his revelation.

"All of us have been hand picked by L."

That had made her visibly calm. The mere mention of L and she was extremely more relaxed than she had been with him before. Not completely, no, but it seemed that L had a supporter in her.

It irritated the hell out of Light, and it was all the more reason for her to die.

And then she'd told him that she'd worked with L two years ago, that she used to be an FBI agent in America until just three months ago. And he had an epiphany.

'_I can use this!'_ he thought, his heart racing.

He'd commented on her sharp analysis of the case, and of her caution and prudence. He'd said he was impressed.

Naomi took a deep breath. "With regard to this case, I decided it would be dangerous to trust the police, and even the task force," she said, her head bowed. "But…"

She looked up, directly into Light's eyes. And a small smile, the first one he'd seen, tugged at the corners of her lips. "L has my complete trust."

Light tried not to scowl.

She'd gone on to tell him that he reminded her of L, that they seemed similar to her.

It had enraged Light to hear that.

"Why don't you join the task force? If you do that, you can work directly with L. Not just that, you can personally bring Kira to justice." Light said, out stretching his hand to hers.

She looked astonished, like that was the last thing she'd expected to hear.

He'd done what he called sweet talking. "It's got to be some kind of fate that we met like this today! I'll give you the recommendation you need to join the task force."

Ryuk was laughing behind Light, grawffing about females and there affinity for the word "fate." The Shinigami was watching intently as the scene played out, full of intrigue and excitement. This could be interesting…

Light went on for awhile, and Naomi came to realized that now that Raye was dead, she had no idea what to do with herself. Where did her life go from here? They were going to start a family, but now… Now all that mattered was catching Kira.

She'd been quite vehement on that point.

"Please let me join the investigation." She proclaimed, her eyes dark and serious.

Light had to hold back a smile of triumph. "Gladly," he said, "if you could just show me some form of identification?"

She paused. Part of her realized that her hand had already begun to reach for her purse. But she'd given him a fake name! Wouldn't it seem a bit odd that she had done so?

But wait. Did this really make sense? The last time she had worked with L, he had chosen her personally. Now mere task force members were permitted to induct people into the fold? Without L's permission?

It didn't seem entirely right, but…

Her hand unclasped her purse, but it froze in the act of unzipping it.

Words from her past were suddenly floating into her memory, replaying a cryptic message in her mind.

"_Please, if you are to ever be undercover, do not use your real name under any circumstance." _

"I…I just realized that I don't have my wallet on me!"

Lights eyebrows twitched, but his smile held in place.

"Oh? Well, any form of ID will work…"

Naomi looked at him and had the sudden feeling of a deer caught in headlights.

"No..," she said on an exhale of breath, making a show of peering into her purse. "I only have some cash and a phone… I can't believe I forgot my wallet! In the craziness of the last few days it must have just slipped my mind."

Light clenched his teeth, a smile still forcibly in consign

Naomi took what she hoped looked like a natural deep breath. She tried to calm her nerves. There was no reason to feel like this, but she had the impression that somehow not revealing her identity was the right thing to do.

"You could take me to the NPA though. I'm sure that since you're a take force member, if you vouched for me there's no reason I couldn't talk with someone. Then afterwards I'll go and get my ID."

Light nodded, his face still full of kindness despite the inner battle raging within him.

'_Forgot her wallet my ass! She's lying! She doesn't trust me!'_

"Well, I suppose that would be okay… is there anyway you could retrieve your ID now?" Light asked in good nature, trying to charm her with a particularly useful look that he'd found rarely didn't work.

Naomi bit her lip. "The hotel is awfully far away…" she said, keeping her eyes trained on Light. Was he trying to get her to reveal herself? Did he somehow know that the name she had given him was a fake?

"What did you say you name was again? Light asked, making sure to look vaguely ashamed at having to ask her again.

"Shoko Maki." She responded immediately, sure now that keeping her identity a secret had been a very smart idea. Something wasn't right…

Light had stopped smiling, and he took a step backwards.

'_What now! What the hell do I do now?!' _

He looked at her, his mind racing. They were on a public street. Was there a way to get to come with him? Once they were in less of a crowded area he could over-power her.

'_I could get her purse away from her. If she really doesn't have an ID… well, I'll have to take care of her myself.' _

Light cleared his throat, noticing that a gentle drizzle of rain had begun to fall. "Well, it seems my father is still in a meeting. Would you like to go get lunch?"

Naomi kept her face carefully blank, even though there was a torrent of thoughts racking her mind at that moment.

'_Is he trying to get me alone? Or is he trying to keep me around until I can talk to another task force member? Maybe he's just trying to be helpful…'_

Light took a small step backwards, preparing himself to begin walking to the nearest alley, sure she would follow, when he ran smack into Shuichi Aizawa.

"Light!" Aizawa exclaimed, his face clearly showing his surprise in seeing the boy.

Light's eyes widened. This was not good.

"Aizawa!" Light said, forcing down the sudden urge to bolt from the scene.

Behind Light, Naomi watched with observant eyes. She'd seen Light's body tense when he realized who it was he'd run into. Not wasting time, she quickly got the man's attention by asking, "Are you on the task force too?"

Aizawa adjusted his umbrella and turned his head to meet the woman's gaze, his eyebrows raised high at her question.

Light, mentally cursing this new change in events, took Aizawa's forearm and gently tried to urge him away from "Shoko Maki," or whatever her name was.

"Can I speak with you for a moment Aizawa-Sama?

Aizawa nodded, and when they were sufficiently far enough away from Naomi, they began to speak.

"What's going on Light?"

Light tried not to look nervous, but he purposely cast a worried glance at Shoko.

"I had to tell her I was on the task force," he said, sounding slightly apologetic. "She was in the NPA building asking all kinds of questions, but no one was there. I thought it might be a good idea to talk to her until someone came around. And..."

Light took a deep breath and made an immense show of looking like he was stealing himself, about to say something important.

"Aizawa… I think she may be Kira."

The shocked look that plastered itself onto Aizawa's face was not disappointing.

"Light! How could you know that?"

Light was the pinnacle of innocence then, talking as though an intelligent, well-mannered son of the Superintendent might.

"She speaks about things like she knows from experience," he said, his voice low so that it wouldn't carry. "And she kept asking specific questions about the task force and its members. And Aizawa… she said that her fiancé was one of the 11 FBI agents murdered by Kira. If that's true, it would have been no trouble for her to get that information."

Aizawa took a deep breath, peering over his shoulder to get a better look at Shoko Maki. She didn't look like Kira. Of course, when imagining the _man_ that could be Kira, Aizawa had pictured a ruthless looking serial killer. Not a beautiful woman.

The task force member thanked Light and walked back to Naomi. "Shoko Maki? I'm part of the Kira investigation. Would you please follow me?"

Aizawa took the woman by the forearm and gently began to lead her away, but Naomi dug her heels into the ground below her.

"Listen, I _want_ to speak with you, but you'll have to let me _**walk**_ on my own." Her voice was sarcastic and she jerked her arm away from Aizawa.

"Oh… yeah, ok."

Light smiled as they passed him. This gave him enough time to go home and look up her real name on the internet. How many women could there be that were linked to Raye Penber? And she'd been on the FBI as well, they had picture ID's of everyone on their web site, he'd just have to hack into it. It could possibly take some time, but he'd figure out her real name soon enough.

"Oh, Light. You'll need to come with me as well." Aizawa said, looking over his shoulder and motioning Light to follow with a twitch of his chin.

Light hid his disappointment well, but his eye twitched when he heard Ryuk laughing behind him.

"They've got you now Light," the Shinigami said, laughing openly. "I can't wait to see how you'll get out of this one. And don't forget, we can make that eye deal anytime…"

Light scowled. Stupid Shinigami and his stupid rules. It would be too easy for Ryuk to just tell him the damn girl's name.

Once back inside the NPA building Aizawa had led Naomi to an interrogation room and read her her rights.

"What! You're arresting me! This is crazy, I demand to speak with L!"

Over her protesting he'd placed hand cuffs on her wrists.

"I don't know if that will be possible," Aizawa said, sounding respectful but firm.

"I refuse to speak until I talk to L." Naomi said steadfastly, glaring at the task force member that had just arrested her. She then pressed her lips together in a show of not talking.

Aizawa grimaced and told her to wait until he returned. She didn't respond but sat heavily on a metal chair at the end of the long silver table, having no choice but to wait until she could speak with L.

"You need to write out a statement, Light. And your father may want to speak with you." Aizawa told him, handing Light a report sheet in the NPA waiting room.

Light nodded and couldn't help but laugh to himself at the irony of it all. The real Kira was in the waiting room, and Shoko Maki was in cuffs awaiting questioning as a potential suspect. Perhaps this could work in his favor? And if he could find her name quickly enough, he could have her commit suicide while she was in custody.

Aizawa left Light to fill out the report, locked himself in an unoccupied room, and called L's headquarters. It only took a moment for Watari to connect him to L.

"Yes, Aizawa-San?" Ryuzaki asked, his tone flat.

Aizawa sighed and looked around to make sure he was really alone.

"L- I mean, Ryuzaki. I have a woman here on the suspicion of being Kira." Aizawa flinched as he said it, knowing that it probably seemed like a very presumptuous thing to say.

"Oh? What's going on Aizawa-San?"

It didn't take long to convey the situation to L, all Aizawa had to go by was what Light had told him after all.

There was a slight pause on L's end, and Aizawa was sure he was thinking over the situation.

"Is Light-Kun with you Aizawa?" L finally asked.

"He's in the waiting room, filling out a report." Aizawa answered.

"Do not let him leave just yet. This woman keeps asking to talk to me?"

"Yes, she said she wouldn't talk until she spoke directly to you." Aizawa answered, remembering the determined set of her jaw as she'd said it.

There was another pause, this time it was slightly longer than the last.

Finally L said, "In three minutes I will call you back Aizawa-San, and you will give the phone to the woman you have in custody."

Aizawa agreed and disconnected, exiting the empty room and passing Light on his way to the interrogation room that held Shoko Maki. "Stay here until I come back." Aizawa told Light as he passed, not slowing down as he hurried down the hall.

Light nodded and tried to keep his nerves at bay. What was going on?

As Aizawa entered the unadorned questioning room, shutting the door tightly and locking it, Naomi glared at him with a look that on any other circumstance would have made him flinch. He opened his mouth to speak, but realized it was pointless to even waste his breath before he'd uttered a word. It was clear by the look on her face that she wasn't going to give him the time of day.

Forty seconds passed before Aizawa's phone rang. He answered it, and L's masked voice came through his ear piece.

"I wanted to use voice distortion when I spoke with her." L said by way of answer, his tone now synthesized and alien sounding.

Aizawa nodded, even though Ryuzaki couldn't see him, before handing the phone to Shoko.

"It's L." He said when she looked at him in question.

Naomi immediately had the phone pressed tightly to her ear.

"L!"

"This is L, and you are?"

Naomi hesitated before she answered, shooting an uncertain glimpse at Aizawa.

"I'm Shoko Maki," she said, her voice faltering.

"Hmmm, and what did you need to say to me Maki-San?"

Naomi bit her lip, realizing that this was much harder to explain when there was a task force agent in the room with her, clinging to her every word. And besides, who said this was really L? Just because he masked his voice, as he'd done two years ago on the BB murder cases, didn't mean that this was the same man.

"Just that… I have important information to give you… And that you know me."

Naomi tried to ignore the look of astonishment on her agent's face, who had never told her his name.

There was a pause before L said, "I do not believe I know a Shoko Maki."

Naomi bit her lip harder. "No you don't… but I worked with you 2 years ago… in LA."

She hoped she was being obvious enough, but by his silence she wasn't sure, so she added, "I may have met someone you worked with, and he told me to always use a false identity in situations like this." She cringed when she said it, hating to reveal the information that her name was an alias in front of the task force agent.

"Oh? And what was his name?" L asked, his voice intrigued.

"Ryuzaki," Naomi responded without pause, not catching the look that passed over Aizawa's face.

"…"

It was another moment before L said, "Please put the task force agent back on the phone, Maki –San."

Naomi did as requested, her hand shaking when she held the phone out to the tall man who'd been waiting in the corner of the room.

Aizawa took the phone. "Yes L?"

"Aizawa-San, please wait at the NPA building for one half hour before letting Light Yagami leave. Do not let him exit the building before then. Then, if you could, escort Shoko Maki-San to my hotel. I will send one of the other agents to relieve you."

Aizawa was able to hide his surprise well this time, but he still inquired, "Can I ask why I'm waiting here a half hour?"

"You can always ask." L responded, and when he said nothing else Aizawa took the hint.

A half an hour later Light was leaving the building with the knowledge that he'd have to come back soon, to give a report to _another_ agent.

"We're checking every angle, so another task force member will probably need to speak with you."

Light had left, taking what Aizawa had said without much trepidation.

'_That makes sense,'_ he though as he left the building. _'But I'm on thin ice right now. Hopefully my lie to Aizawa bought me enough time to find out her name. I'll get rid of her before she has the chance to talk!' _

Aizawa had waited until Light was well down the street before he re-entered the building and escorted Shoko Maki to a police cruiser, still in hand cuffs.

Naomi had wanted to ask where he was taking her, but she'd clamped her lips to prevent the question. She'd only talk to L.

Only L.

The hotel Aizawa pulled into was only five minutes away from the NPA building, and he took Naomi in through a private elevator so that no one could see them coming in. They rode it in silence to the top, and Aizawa knocked on the door of L's room.

"Come in."

Aizawa could recognize the voice as L's through the door. He opened it, and was caught off guard when he saw that all the task force agents, Watari, and L himself, were still seated around the coffee table.

Naomi looked across the room, and her eyes immediately flew to the wild haired young man that sat with his knees pulled to his chest.

A man she knew…

"Ryuzaki!" she exclaimed, her eyes widening. "Wha… What are you doing here…?"

Her voice trailed off, and if it was possible her eyes became as large and wide as L's. Things were suddenly falling in place. All the clues, all the thoughts she'd denied.

"You!" she exclaimed, the hand cuffs chinking together as she struggled slightly against them. "It was you in the subway! You're L!"

Naomi was assaulted with the memory from two years previous, and the fact that she'd intentionally choose not to believe that the man she had met in the subway was L. It had seemed easier that way, after the fact.

"_Don't just stand there. Say something. This attitude won't make things easier for you. What's your name?" _

_Naomi Misora has asked his name. _

_The young man nodded. _

_And answered. _

"_Please call me Ryuzaki," he said, unperturbed. _

L watched her reaction without much of his own, but at her exclamation he smiled just slightly.

"Welcome, Shoko Maki. Aizawa-San, please remove those hand cuffs."

_**xxx**_

Author's Note: And now the fun really starts! It's a whole new ball game from here on out kids, so don't be surprised that the rest of this fic doesn't follow everything in the manga to a tee…

Hope you're enjoying it so far. I know this was a pretty speedy update, but please don't expect it all the time. Besides being very busy, I have 2 other stories I'm working on. Thank you to Tikaani, my first reviewer for this fic! I'm glad you like it. I always liked Naomi too, and after reading Another Note I wondered how she and L would have interacted together if she'd been brought onto the task force.

Please review, and thanks for taking the time to read this!


	3. Chapter 3, Revealing the Truth

_Disclaimer:_ Uh, I soooo don't own Death Note. If I did, do you really think I'd kill L? :(

_**xxx**_

_**Chapter Three: Revealing the Truth**_

_**xxx**_

Light Yagami stared at his computer monitor in frustration.

Shoko Maki was _nowhere_ to be found.

There was no one that looked like her in the photo gallery on the FBI's website. There was no female linked to Raye Penber that could be the woman he desperately needed to get rid of. And while there was a considerably large serial killer case that happened 2 years ago in LA, all the information on it was impossible to obtain.

There was no way he was going to find Shoko Maki's real name.

"_**L**_," Light muttered darkly, glaring at the screen in front of him.

Ryuk lifted his head from Light's mattress in interest. "Hunh?"

"L did this," Light spat in anger, his voice low. "It's obvious. Normally it wouldn't be so hard to find her. He must have figured out who she was… I'm sure Aizawa called him and told him what was going on..."

Light's fist's clenched, his nails pressing so hard into his palms that he almost drew blood. If L trusted this woman as much as she trusted him, then he was about to hear an earful about Kira and Light Yagami. L would suspect Light now, and he'd be taking the appropriate measures to prove that Light was Kira.

And having L this close to figuring out the truth was too close for comfort.

"They still don't have enough on me. They can't prove anything. I just have to lay low, and keep up my guard…"

A thought came to him then, slamming into his consciousness like a freight train.

_Yuri_.

Yuri was the girl he'd taken with him to Spaceland, the one who he'd used in his plan to get Raye to reveal his true identity. She had been on the bus with him when it had been hijacked, and she was the only one who had actually seen Raye show his ID to Light.

She was a witness.

Before there had been no reason to kill her, but now…? Was she now a liability? Would the NPA question her now that Shoko Maki was in their custody?

Could he _afford_ to kill her?

Her death, an accident or not, would still draw some unwanted attention to him. Now that the NPA knew Kira could kill other ways than a heart attack (he was sure Shoko would tell them), her death by any means would look suspicious. More so because she knew him, and killing her now could add to the interest he was bound to get in the next few days.

_But… _

But, he could make her leave a note saying that she was running away, leaving her home and gallivanting off with a boy or a friend. He could have her commit suicide far from where she lived, in a place where it would be hard to find her body… and even if they did find her body, they still couldn't tie him to her death.

Light pulled out his death note, flipping it to a blank page and poising an ink pen over it, thinking about every detail he was about to write down.

_Yuri Ohno_

_Suicide. _

_Starting January 6__th__, 2004, wakes up and thinks only of how best to commit suicide in a way that nobody will be inconvenienced, and her body will not be discovered. Leave's a note on her bed telling her parents that she is going out of town, and dies within 24 hours by implementing this plan_.

Ryuk stood from Lights bed, looked over the boy's shoulder, and chuckled. "You know, just because you write down_, 'and her body will not be discovered,'_ doesn't mean it will happen. The Death Note can't alter the future by _that_ much."

Light set his jaw. "So she won't kill herself somewhere inconspicuous?" He asked, knowing it was too late to take back what he had already set into motion.

Ryuk hyuked a few times before answering. "Oh, she'll do it somewhere that would be hard to find her body, but in the future if someone _happens_ to stumble on it… well, that can't be helped."

Light shrugged his shoulders in nonchalance, the anger on his face relaxing to an uncaring facade.

"Doesn't matter," he said, twirling in his chair to face Ryuk. "She'll die somewhere that is out of the way, and I can't be blamed. As long as she isn't found right away, I should be ok."

Ryuk smiled, his eyes twinkling jarringly. "I always knew you'd think of a way out of this one, Light," he said, but his tone was full of eerie humor, like he knew something Light didn't.

_**xxx**_

"_Welcome, Shoko Maki. Aizawa-San, please remove those hand cuffs." _

Naomi rubbed at her wrists when Aizawa un-cuffed her, her gaze never breaking from L's.

And there was no doubt in her mind that this was L.

There was no other explanation. In the subway, two years ago, he'd said; _"Watching videos and seeing it for real is quite something different, but now I think I understand." _

He'd meant her capoeira, it was as obvious now as it should have been then. But she hadn't wanted to know then, she'd wanted to think that the man named L had only been a voice over a telephone. It had made her life easier, it had simplified things to shove the thoughts of the man in the subway to the back of her consciousness.

It hadn't really been hard two years ago to convince herself that Ryuzaki must have been someone who worked for L, not the detective himself. There was nothing so special about her that L would want to meet her in person anyway. So the surprise and astonishment she was showing at the present was completely authentic.

"Y-you!"

Her mind raced. Should she hit him? A large part of her wanted to hit him for deceiving her. And yet, another part of her was too stunned to do anything but stand there and gape at him. Her feet seemed permanently glued to the floor.

"Why?" Was all that she could finally force out.

Ryuzaki's lips twitched, his large serious eyes never blinking as they watched her.

"I could never come right out and tell you that I was L, Shoko… No, that would have been very reckless of me… although I must say that going to see you that day had been entirely on impulse."

Naomi stared at him, her mouth slightly open. For a week she had spent her time with a serial killed that had been imitating this man, and while they looked very little alike when you got down to it, there were things that they both did that were disconcerting to her. The way he and Beyond Birthday spoke, some of the mannerisms each of them had, it took her to a place that made her slightly uncomfortable.

Taking a deep breath, shaking her head to try and clear the fog that had gathered in her mind, Naomi was able to speak.

"L, I need to speak with you… in private."

L's brows raised a fraction higher than they already were. "You can't tell me in front of the task force? I assure you that they are all trustworthy individuals…"

Naomi shook her head fervently. "No, I've already been lied to by a task force member today… I need to talk to _you_."

The other men that were seated around L looked surprised by her proclamation of 'being lied to' by a task force member, but if it was news to Ryuzaki then he didn't let it show. Instead he nodded and slid his feet to the floor, standing and walking to a room located behind him, gesturing for her to follow him with a small wave of his arm.

Naomi strode to him, keeping her eyes diverted from the men at the coffee table as she passed them, knowing that one of them was Light Yagami's father.

"Should we be letting her talk to L alone?" She heard one of the men question, and she cringed slightly at the thought of how this might look.

Like maybe she was here to _kill_ L.

L seemed unworried by the situation, however, and closed the door behind him tightly once they were both inside of the room, which turned out to be a small, expensively decorated kitchen.

Naomi turned to look at him, her eyes clearly showing worry and distrust on her face.

"If you really are L," Naomi whispered, taking a step back so that she bumped into the island counter. "You'll know my real name."

L just stared, his eyes boring into her until she was compelled to look away, before he walked around her to the refrigerator. Naomi turned and watched him as he rummaged through its contents, humming in happiness as he found and pulled out a large glass bowl of chocolate pudding.

He sat it on the counter between them and extracted a spoon from a drawer at his waist.

"Would you like some, Naomi Misora?" He asked, offering her a spoon of her own.

"…"

Her breath caught, and Naomi felt tears prick her eyes. He'd said her _name_, he'd said her _real_ _name_.

"No thank you." She whispered, shaking her head slightly, clenching her jaw.

'_It's a stupid thing to cry over, get a grip!'_ Naomi thought, taking a deep breath to control her emotions.

L nodded once before focusing his attention on the task at hand, which happened to be pudding. He extracted a large about of the wiggling dessert onto his spoon (which he held with the very tips of his fingers), and shoveled it into his mouth, his body leaning on the counter and hunched over the dish.

Naomi watched in slight disgust, all relief of his knowing her name leaving her entirely. When it came to eating, L had _no_ manners.

"I see that Beyond had some things right about you… you enjoy your sweets…"

L looked up at her from across the table.

"He was very perceptive… although it was more for his own benefit than yours. As much as he didn't want to believe it, he was trying to _become_ me, to become 'L'… but I don't believe he really liked them as much as I do." Ryuzaki said, his mouth full.

Naomi's lips twitched at his confidence in the statement. "Oh? Are you 90 percent sure?" She teased, remembering him referring to percents in their phone conversations two years ago.

"100 percent, actually." L responded, nonplused as he continued to take large mouthfuls of the gelatin.

Naomi sighed, knowing that he was waiting for her explanation. It took her a moment, the silence stretching on, before she was finally able to say, "Raye, my fiancé, is dead."

L lifted his head to look at her, licking the spoon clean as he did so.

"Kira killed him." Naomi finished, her eyes focusing on the counter, her mood suddenly shifting as she stated the reason for her fervent intent on speaking with him.

"I know." L said after a moment, dropping the spoon into the now empty bowl (and it had been a rather large one), with a loud clang.

"You know?" Naomi questioned, her head cocking to the side.

"When I realized it was you, I quickly looked for a connection as to why you might need to speak with me. Your attachment to Raye Penber wasn't to hard to find, seeing as you both worked at the FBI for a time, and I immediately knew why you wished to talk to me."

Naomi bit her lip. "That makes sense," she said.

"You were speaking with Light Yagami?" L questioned, bringing a finger to his lips.

Naomi nodded. "He said he was the Superintendents son… I was hoping he could help me."

L's expression didn't change, but Naomi felt that there was somehow a shift in his mood.

"Please tell me everything from the beginning." L said, and Naomi was at last feeling the block that had been weighing her shoulder lifted in glorious relief. She was finally talking to L, and somehow things were going to be made right.

_**xxx**_

It was close to an hour later that Naomi had told all that she knew. From Raye's excursion on the hijacked bus, to revealing his ID to a passenger, to the connection she'd made between that incident and his death. She'd gone on to tell him her theories about how Kira killed, and her discussion with Light Yagami just hours ago.

L seemed most interested about Light.

"How many times did he ask for your name?" He repeated for the second time, and Naomi felt her heart quicken.

"He asked once when we met, and then he asked to see my ID later, when he offered me a job on the task force. When I said I didn't have it on me, he was kind of pushy about me going to get it right then… and then he asked my name again…"

L stared past Naomi's shoulder in thought, his index finger moving back and forth over his lips.

Naomi finally couldn't hold it in any longer.

"He's not part of the task force, is he?" she said, making it less of a question and more of a statement.

L shook his head no.

"You suspect he's Kira, don't you." She said, and when L nodded, she wasn't surprised.

"I'm eighty-seven percent sure as of right now… I could be over estimating though… Still, he fits the profile that I have expected Kira will be like. Young, smart, and he has access to the Kira case because of his father…" He said, his eyes serious as he looked up at her from across the kitchen's island counter, where they had not moved from since they'd begun their talk, both standing on opposite sides.

"Will you arrest him?" She asked timidly.

"Hmmm… Well, there's no solid proof that Light Yagami is Kira. I don't have enough evidence to obtain him. I need substantial proof or a confession from him, and I have neither… If I could find someone who had actually witnessed Raye showing Light his federal ID, but even then…"

Naomi sucked in a deep breath, her heart racing faster as she fought down a slight panic.

"He… he needed to know my name… to _kill_ me."

"If Light is indeed Kira, then yes, I believe so," L agreed, straightening from his slouched position over the table, placing his hands deep into his pockets.

"L," Naomi said quickly, her head jerking to look at him. "L, he can find out my identity easily. My pictures still on the FBI's website. Hell, it's in the paper from when we caught B. I've told you everything I know, please, _**please**_ catch him."

Naomi's heart raced more rapidly then ever, and she wondered if she was about to have a heart attack. Is this how Raye had felt? Had she really told L everything? Was there anything she'd left out? If she died now, without having given him an important clue, it could stop him from being able to catch and prosecute Kira.

L's lips twitched, "You are not going to die, Naomi Misora." He said, full of confidence.

Naomi couldn't help the look of terror and alarm that had settled across her features. She'd been stealing herself for death ever since she had heard of Raye's heart attack, ever since she'd been informed of Raye's demise.

"How… How could you know that?" she whispered, her hands slipping into her jacket pockets, trying to hide the fact that her palms were sweaty with nerves.

L smirked. "After your phone call, I made sure to have all information of your true identity repressed. I'm sure that Light Yagami had already figured out that he will not be able to obtain your real name. I'm sure he's also figured out that we do not have enough evidence to arrest him as of yet. …But now we can move in quicker than I had originally planned…"

Naomi stared at L in wide eyed wonder. "You… you suppressed my real name?" she asked in a whisper, her voice in slight disbelief.

"I did. It was the only way to save you, Naomi-San."

Naomi was filled with an image from two years past of L at the subway, trying to fling his arms around her. Trying to _hug_ her. She'd been taken by surprise then, and had immediately kicked him down a flight of stairs.

"I could hug you now," she said, her voice shaky, "but I think you owe me a swift kick down a flight of stairs."

L smiled, and Naomi was struck by the oddness of it. Like smiling was not a common occurrence for him, and that he was so out of practice he'd forgotten how to do it. Like smiling was the most unnatural thing for the famous **L** to do.

"Light tried to convince the agent who obtained you, Shuichi Aizawa, that you were Kira," he said, his eyes unblinking as he stared at her.

Naomi felt her heart stop. He'd tried to shift the blame on her?

There were a million reasons to do it. It would have taken the heat off him long enough to find out her real name and kill her. She could have been blamed for the murders on Kira's behalf entirely, making him less of a suspect. It would discredit her theories on Kira, and when she'd talked to the task force they would have been less inclined to believe anything she had to say.

The list of reasons was endless.

"I feel like a fool," she said finally, her shoulders slouching. "I knew something was wrong but… but I wanted to believe he could help me."

"There is nothing foolish about seeking help, and Light gave you every reason to trust him… I musk ask though, why didn't you give him your ID when he asked for it? The way your story goes, you seemed to believe him when he said he was a task force agent, working under me."

Naomi sighed harshly. "It's what you said, actually, two years ago._ If you are to ever be undercover, do not use your real name under any circumstance. _When he asked for an ID, I went immediately for my purse. I almost… I almost did what he asked… but then I remembered Ryuzaki…_you_, saying that to me. I thought it was such an odd thing to say then, but I realized that this was the kind of situation you meant…"

L seemed almost pleased, and he walked around the counter to stand so they were side by side, facing each other.

"We'll say nothing to Chief Yagami about Light's involvement in this. Only what we have to, anyway. I don't want him accidentally alerting his son to our suspicions of him. Let the boy go on thinking that he is invincible…"

Naomi was quickly trying to keep up with L's change in topic. "You say _accidentally_, like he wouldn't do it on purpose. He's the boy's father, you don't think that he'd try to help Light if he knew you suspected him?" Naomi pointed out, unable to keep the skepticism and doubt out of her voice.

The tip of L's thumb entered his mouth. "I don't believe so, no. Superintendent Yagami seems to have a strong sense of moral obligation to this case."

He was looking up at the ceiling, and Naomi fought the urge to glance up and see what was so interesting. Instead she watched him, waiting for him to tell her his thoughts.

Finally he said, "We need to be discreet, very discreet, from now on…"

Naomi raised an eyebrow. "_We_?"

L's eyes diverted from the ceiling to look at her, his thumb exiting his mouth, only to have his lip sucked between his teeth. He was staring at her intensely, his eyes wide as ever.

"Yes, that brings me to my next point. Naomi, I can trust you, and I say so knowing you believe this. I know that Light asked you to join the task force under false pretense, but I hope you accept the offer when it is _**me**_ asking you."

Naomi faltered. It struck something in her, either her pride or her introversion, to be told by L that he trusted her. To be trusted by L, whether he was lying or not, was an honor.

"You want… you want _me_?" She asked.

L's look was steadfast. "I assume you want to bring the man who killed your fiancé to justice. Your help would be beneficial to me, as it was two years ago…"

Naomi flinched at the mention of her murdered fiancé. It was true though, and going back to America without seeing this through was not an option at this point.

"I… I accept your offer, L," she said eventually, holding her hand out to the wild haired man in front of her.

L accepted her hand shake firmly. "And I'd appreciate if you'd call me Ryuzaki, not L," he added.

"…"

At this Naomi's determination wavered, and her hand slipped away from L's.

"I don't know if I can do that," she said after a moments pause. "When Beyond Birthday was impersonating you… he told me to call him Ryuzaki. I know you know this, but… calling you that name… I don't think I can."

A chill went up Naomi's spine at the remembrance of the deranged serial killer. Calling L by that name was too eerie, too strange. Like it might somehow bring back the psychopathic murderer.

There was a pause, as though L was thinking over what she had just said.

"I didn't think of it like that, but it makes sense. Calling me L would be fine when you're here. But in public, if you are on the phone or in other circumstances where you must speak with me, you should call me something else."

"What?"

"Anything will do, just not L. And we will tell everyone from here on out that your name is Shoko Maki." He said, before drawing in a breath.

"Also," he continued, "I don't know where you are staying now, but a room in the hotel I stay in would be essential. The accommodations would be included in your salary. This way, Kira will not be able to track you down, and I'm not far away in case of trouble."

Naomi agreed without question, glad at this suggestion. Being near enough to L that he may only be a floor or even a room away was somehow comforting.

"One last thing," L said, his tone deadly serious. "I trust all of the task force agents outside of this door, but you do not work for them. You are working independently under me, and _only_ me. Not the NPA. Any information we discuss without their knowledge should be kept only between the two of us and Watari."

"Who is Watari?" Naomi asked, unable to hold back the question.

"He is the older gentleman you saw coming in. Anything you say to him can be expected to be kept a secret." L answered, still awaiting her response to his conditions.

Naomi met his gaze, looking into his eyes with conviction. "I will never reveal any of our private conversations to anyone. You can trust my secrecy and silence, L."

L nodded and looked at the door that would lead them into the living room, where the task force agents were still waiting.

"Aizawa-San will have told them about the possibility of you being Kira. They will not suspect Light Yagami because he is the Superintendents son, and because they know him… You will more than likely be under suspicion from them at this point on… Will you be able to sustain this, Naomi Misora?"

Naomi nodded, "I will. I know why they would suspect me, but I am here to help solve this case… there is nothing that could distract me from that, not even the knowledge that others think I'm Kira."

"They will also know that your name is an alias, and they may try to get you to reveal your true identity. Under no circumstances are you to tell your true name to anyone. Do you understand?"

Naomi nodded again, her eyes full of resolve and determination.

This seemed to appease L, and he stepped to the door, placing his hand on it.

"Then come, Shoko Maki…"

_**xxx**_

_**Authors Note:**_

Isn't L smart? How clever was it of him to hide her real name?

Yuri didn't ever die in the manga or anime, but it fits my purpose now. That's right; I'm molding this fiction to suit my own purposes, how shocking! :)

Large thanks goes to everyone who has reviewed. Thank you so much! I'm glad you're enjoying it. I will warn all of you now that L's real name is eventually revealed, and that it may get a bit smutty… not yet though! How bad would that be, if she was off doing it with L when her fiancé just died. :P

And by the way, I don't know how you all felt about Raye, but he always bothered me. Telling her to mind her business and quit her job… he was a bit chauvinistic. In the book Another Note, Naomi isn't really sure if she wants to marry Raye, and she's also unsure about going back to the FBI. L makes her realize that it's something she really wants to do, while Raye was telling her not to return. He annoyed me with his whole, "stay home and take care of our kids, be the good house wife" thing… Ugh.

Okay, enough from me! Please review, constructive criticism is always welcomed, but no flames! :)

_**xxx**_


	4. Chapter 4, What happened?

Disclaimer: I still don't own Death Note… Why the hell not?

_**Authors Note:**_ I refuse point blank to believe that L never slept for almost the entire year he was on the Kira case. It's impossible, even for the world's greatest detective.

_**Chapter Four: What happened?**_

_**xxx**_

Naomi lay on her bed, flat on her back, staring up at the ceiling. A week had passed. One long, pointless, week.

The ceiling fan moved in slow circles above her, and she watched with alert eyes, willing herself to go to sleep.

But her mind was racing, and even in her slumber deprived state she couldn't force her body to unwillingly relax.

Her mind kept replaying the events of the week like a movie in her head. And try as she might, she couldn't help but go over every minuet detail, starting with the moment L had called her Shoko Maki and introduced her to the rest of the task force…

_**xxx**_ _(…flashback begins…)_

_L held the door open for Naomi, who had just felt her life shift irrevocably into the new guise of "Shoko Maki."_

_It was unsettling to hear the young, wide-eyed detective call her by that name, as if it were truly her own, and she felt nervous by the fact that she was so unused to the title. Answering to this name was going to be a trial, and it would be obvious to others, she knew, that this false name she had chosen was indeed artificial. She made a mental note to try and act natural when someone called her by that name. _

_When she stepped out of the kitchen, L following close behind, all eyes immediately swung to her, and most of them felt hostile. She stopped in her tracks, only making it three small steps into the living area of the hotel room. _

"_This," L began, moving to stand next to her, "is Shoko Maki. She is now a member of this task force, working directly under me." _

_Naomi's spine stiffened, and she sucked a deep breath through her nose. This was __not__ going to go well. _

_There was a silence, before a dignified looking man, she placed him somewhere in his mid-forties, stood and said, "Ryuzaki, my task force agent has told us that my son helped to apprehend this woman under the suspicion of being Kira. …Is this true?" _

_Naomi's heart caught suddenly in her chest. So this was Superintendent Yagami, Light's father. It did not go past her that he'd said "my task force agent," purposely refraining from using the agents real name. She knew, however, that the agent who had obtained her was Aizawa, because both Light and L had now said his name._

_L's hands were fisted deep into his jean pockets as he made his way past Naomi to position himself back into his unoccupied chair at the head of the coffee table. His knees were immediately brought to his upper body, and his hands, now extracted from his pockets, were placed one on his knee, and the other raising to place a finger on his lips. _

"… _That is true," he said eventually, his voice flat and unconcerned. Naomi still had yet to move forward, feeling as though she were a deer caught in headlights. _

_All eyes of the task force slid once again to her, before directing their attention back to L. _

"_There must be a good reason for you to have her here then, Ryuzaki, when she should be locked in a holding cell at the NPA, awaiting questioning," Chief Yagami said, his tone respectful, but carrying the slight lilt of a person who was demanding answers. _

_L reached a long arm down to the coffee table and picked up a cookie between his thumb and index finger, nibbling on it before responding, "… I do." _

"…"

_The pause was unbearable, and Naomi had to fight down the urge to answer the question herself. _

"…_She is not Kira," L said eventually, once the cookie was half gone. "We are work associates, and I trust this woman completely. She will be an asset to this case. Also, this is Raye Penber's fiancé." _

_Silence starched, and Naomi bit her lip as all eyes focused on her once more. It was unsettling, the way they're gazes went from glaring, to looks of sympathy._

"_I… I am Shoko Maki…" Naomi finally said with a bow, unable to stand the silence anymore. _

"_That's not your __real__ name…" a man responded, the one who had detained her. Naomi looked up at him. Aizawa was seated next to Chief Yagami, and he had an abundance of unnaturally large hair and a very serious face. _

_Naomi looked to L for help, stepping forward so that she was now half way to the coffee table, still to trepid to let herself be seated with them. L offered no help withstanding however, his attention focused entirely on consuming the sugar cookie, and Naomi took that to mean she could answer freely. _

_Before she could open her mouth to answer though, Aizawa alleged, "You said; __**'He told me to always use a false identity in situations like this,'**__ when I obtained you. __… So that means your names a fake, right?" _

_Naomi couldn't help but notice that his tone was quite aggressive. She also couldn't help but be slightly annoyed that L only looked over his shoulder at her, apparently waiting to see how she responded. _

"… _Its true," she said eventually, sighing as she did, utterly worried that she was making the wrong move. The best way to work with them would not be to start on a lie though, so half truths would have to suffice._

"_But my fiancé was killed by revealing his true identity, and the precaution was to protect my life… It stays in place now so that my identity can remain a secret, and I can live long enough to avenge Raye's death and bring Kira to justice," she finished, hoping that they would understand. _

_She was worried for a moment that she had done something wrong, but L had said that they would know her name was a fake anyway. Why not just admit it now? _

_But Naomi could swear that she saw L's lips twitch as he sipped loudly at his tea. _

_After that, introductions were made, and Naomi finally made her way to settling down in a chair, seated between Agent Ukita and Watari. _

_L explained most of the situation, leaving out her conversation with Light Yagami just hours before, and informed the task force of all her discoveries and speculations on Kira. They seemed both impressed and weary, and Naomi was sure that this may have had something to do with the fact that Light had told Aizawa he suspected her as Kira because she knew so much about the case. _

"_This does not explain why my son thought she was Kira, and why she is here, cleared of all charges, now." Superintendent Yagami said, and Naomi stared down at her lap, trying to keep all of her emotions in check. _

"… _Wellll…" L began, stretching out the word gratuitously. "I believe that perhaps your son was being over zealous. You forget that Kira was in the Kanto region of Japan on December 5__th__, and Shoko was without a doubt no where near Kanto, let alone the continent of Japan. There was also no reason for her to murder her own fiancé, seeing that I suspect a family member of the NPA to be Kira, not a member of the FBI…" _

_Naomi's mind raced, __**'Raye is dead. He's dead. Dead, dead, dead, dead….'**_

_It was still shocking for her to hear, he'd only been gone for less than a week. _

'_**Not gone, dead,'**__ she corrected herself, her jaw clenching as she thought of his murder, and the boy she was now sure had caused it. _

_**Dead…**_

_L's explanations continued, and Naomi listened with a half ear. But her thoughts then were determined and concrete. _

'_**Light Yagami did this,' **__she thought, her breath shallow. _

'_**If L is suspicious of him, then I have good reason to believe that he is Kira… I don't know when it will be, or how it will happen, but I will **__**kill**__** Light Yagami…' **_

_And the same thought that kept running through her mind was Raye._

'_**He's dead…'**_

_**xxx**_ _(… end flashback…) _

Naomi Misora sighed loudly, sneering at the ceiling fan above her. After that things had been slow moving. Chief Yagami had been informed that his son was suspect a day later, and the rest of the week was spent with L and Soichiro Yagami behind closed doors, observing Light's behavior from the many well placed cameras hidden in his room and throughout the house.

It may have seemed to an objective observer that this was indeed a lot of progress, but in reality it was Naomi, alienated from the rest of the task force because of her suspicion as Kira, driving herself crazy because sleep was unobtainable and making any progress without L seemed impossible. She was not a patient person by nature, and waiting while L and Superintendent Yagami combed through evidence was a hassle and a headache.

The one and only time Naomi had seen L since he'd been locked in that room was just hours ago. He'd come out the closed off living area for what she hoped was for the intent of a shower. His dark eyes had focused on her, looking more unkempt than usual, and he'd asked, "Have you slept, Maki-San?"

Naomi had raised one perfectly arched eyebrow before answering, "…A few hours last night."

"Please go and get some sleep," he'd replied, before disappearing down the hall and out of sight without a backwards glance.

Matsuda had looked over at her and grinned timidly. "You _are_ starting to look pretty ragged… you've even got dark circles under your eyes like Ryuzaki!"

Ukita, who was also in the room, looked over at Matsuda as if he were crazy.

"Did you really just say that?" he inquired, a cigarette hanging from his lips.

Naomi rolled her eyes and stood, not bothering to acknowledge either of the men, who had been sitting around the coffee table with her. They had been doing nothing more productive than looking through case files that had already been combed over one hundred times at least.

Matsuda wasn't being rude, she knew it was just his personality, and she made her way out of L's quarters and down the hall to her own room without being _too_ bitter by his words.

And now it was hours later and she was still lying, wide awake, her mind racing with every thought that popped into her brain. There was no way she was going to be able to sleep. There had to be a reason that L had asked her to get some rest, and it had to be because there had been some sort of break through. Something was about to happen, and L wanted her ready.

…

But she couldn't sleep! There was no way that her body was going to relax enough to even get close to that point, no matted how exhausted she was. When she was in the states she used to take her motorcycle out onto the open road. She'd burn off steam, get in a few good hours of to put her thoughts in order, escape her life, and by the time she got home she'd usually fall right to sleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.

But she hadn't had her bike for months now… not since Raye had proposed and she'd sold it.

Naomi scowled once more, shoving thoughts of the past away, out of her consciousness, and sat up stiffly.

If L needed her, there was no way she'd be able to sleep until she found out what he wanted.

What was sleep anyway, but a waste of time?

_**xxx**_

L had fallen asleep.

He'd been pushing it, he knew, staying awake for a week straight without a moment of rest, but there had been no time for it. Although watching Light sleep probably hadn't been necessary, he hadn't wanted to take his eyes off his suspect for even a moment.

It was a good thing he was used to this.

He let the scolding water from the shower head hit his face, his head tilted back, and he sighed slightly, glad to finally get away from the suffocating room. He'd developed a slight headache from staring at the TV screen, and the three hours he'd spent in a light slumber had helped remarkably.

Three hours, that was all he'd allowed himself.

Perhaps he'd sleep more later, but now he had other things to attend to.

Like catching Kira.

He was going to reveal himself to Light Yagami, and soon. He couldn't kill L without knowing his real name, so he wasn't too worried about Light meeting him in person. But still, there was a large risk in doing this.

There was nothing for it though, and this was the only was L could think of to try and get Light to confess to him that he was Kira. Especially since the lead he'd had on the Yuri girl was a dead end.

L had scoured through a list of Light's school friends, contacting all of their parents and asking if any of them had made a trip with Light Yagami to Spaceland on or around December 25th.

Yuri Ohno _had._

_**xxx**__ (… flashback begins…) _

"_But she's gone!" her mother had said over the phone, her tone full of concern. _

"_Gone?" L had asked, masking his voice so that it was slightly accented. _

"_Yes, she left a note saying she was going out of town to see a friend, and I haven't heard from her since… This isn't like her at all." The woman sounded as though she might have been crying. _

"_When did she go missing?" L had asked, and his mind raced at this twist in events. _

"_On January 6__th__… I'm very worried about her…" _

_There was a slight pause before L said, "You should call the police and make a report… but since she's an adult they're not likely to do much for at least another week…"_

_**xxx**__ (… flashback ends…) _

L hummed in disappointment, his hair sloshing over his face and water dripping off his nose. If Yuri had been available, he could have questioned her. But now… now she was missing, and L was sure Light had something to do with it. That _Kira_ had something to do with it.

'_Always thinking ahead, aren't you Light? Well, you've just convinced me all the more that you are indeed Kira. There is only one reason for you to get rid of Yuri, and it's because you have something to hide.' _

His eyes were narrowed as he thought of the implications of making a young girl just disappear. Yuri must have seen Raye Penber show his identification to Light. And now that Naomi Misora was in his employ, Light knew that all loose ends had to be tied up.

Naomi…

He was glad that she was here with him, and that she was alive. He was sure, without a doubt in his mind, that if she had revealed her real name to Light Yagami, she would be the one in Yuri's place. Missing, most likely dead, and never to be found or heard from again.

But something had happened to Naomi Misora in the two years it had been since he'd worked with her on the BB murder cases. Something about her had changed. She had quit the FBI, a job she was well suited for. It bothered L that she was able to let it go, and he knew the reason was because of Raye Penber's proposal.

Looking through the information he now had on file for her, it also seemed the Naomi had sold her motor bike as well. This was also around the time that Raye had proposed.

…

"Why? Why did you do that Naomi Misora? You are different now than you were then…you were stronger then," L mused out loud, reaching a long arm to the shower knob and turning the stream of water off.

As he exited the tub, steam rising off his hunched shoulders, his thoughts continued in the same direction.

'_You are softer spoken, and much more polite… You changed for him… you became someone else… for him…' _

L sighed again, the towel he'd wrapped around him tossed to the bathrooms tiled floor. He pulling on clean jeans and a new white shirt, and that was it. He was ready to continue the investigation, his thoughts and mind in better working order with a rest and a shower.

When L entered the living area of his top floor hotel room, he raked his eyes over the task force. Superintendent Yagami, Agent Aizawa, Agent Ukita, Agent Matsuda, Watari and Naomi Misora. Agent Mogi was at the NPA, organizing files and answering calls.

Naomi looked as though she hadn't taken his advice on sleeping. Her hair was in a pony tail, her jeans were loose fitting, and her shirt was the same she had on earlier. She looked like she was loosing weight, and her eyes had a dead quality to them.

L let it go. He needed to take care of this first, before he worried about anyone else.

"Concerning the live feed we witnessed on the Yagami home… there was nothing," L said, his tone flat as he took his seat at the head of the coffee table, immediately pouring himself a cup of tea and adding liberal amounts of sugar to it.

There was muttering amongst the Agents, and Chief Yagami expressed his thankfulness that his son was no longer a suspect.

"… I didn't say that. There was nothing I could see from the tapes that revealed your son to be Kira, but that does not eliminate him as a suspect…"

More muttering, more angry outbursts. And through it all Naomi said nothing.

Yes, she had changed.

"I have decided on a course of action…" L said finally, and the squabbling died down as they all focused on his words.

"I believe that there is a chance, a small chance, that your son is Kira," L said, directing his sentence to Chief Yagami and pulling his knees to his chest.

"I'll say… 3 percent. But as you said before, there should be no stone left unturned… I think that spending some time with your son may prove to be beneficial. That way, if he is not Kira, his innocence will be apparent to me."

L reached down to the coffee table and picked up a round truffle, holding it delicately between his fingertips.

"Watari has already gone through the paperwork, and has made it possible to join Light when he goes to To-Oh University. I'll be taking the exam, of course, but that will not be a problem. … If your son is not Kira, we can move on to a new strategy."

The meeting went on, the fighting continued, but finally they all agreed. And still, through the entire discussion, Naomi said nothing.

'_What happened to her?'_ L wondered, watching her intently as his finger grazed his lips.

'… _What happened?'_

_**xxx**_

It was hours later that all the NPA agents had left the hotel, leaving L and Naomi at the coffee table, rummaging through files.

"This is pointless." Naomi finally said, frustrated, and L looked up at her.

"What?" He asked, knowing that she was talking about more than the files in front of them.

"We know Light is Kira. We know he's the one responsible for all of this. It's pointless to keep looking through these files, and it pointless for you to go to To-Oh."

L watched her intently, a part of him secretly pleased. This was more like the Naomi Misora he knew.

"… You're going to get yourself killed." Naomi said, her jaw clenched.

There was a pause, and L looked at her over the rim of his cup, sipping loudly at his coffee.

"This is necessary, Maki-San. Light knew, somehow, that we were watching him. He was too careful, too perfect… and he mentioned you."

Naomi's eyes flashed, and her lips thinned.

"What did he say?!" She questioned, her voice sharp.

"He was quite intent on convincing his father that you were Kira. Whenever Superintendent Yagami returned home, Light was always sure to mention his conversation with you, and his suspicions that you are Kira…"

Naomi's eye twitched.

"Soooo," L continued, popping a chocolate into his mouth, "I need to speed up this case quite a bit. The more he talks, the more he convinces his father that you are indeed Kira. If suspicion is turned away from him, they will suspect you, and if I apprehend him now, I will not have their trust in the matter."

Naomi's gaze was conflicted. The more she thought about it, the more it seemed like he was doing this for her. She knew that wasn't the case, not entirely anyway, but for him to stick his neck out like this, to risk his own life… it was dangerous.

"You did not sleep earlier." L said, breaking her thoughts.

"I… I couldn't. I can't sleep… I can't do anything but work on this case…"

L nodded in understanding, knowing from experience exactly how this felt like.

"You need to drink more caffeine then." He said simply, standing and moving away from the coffee table, leaving Naomi to watch his retreating back, not allowing the conversation to move forward.

"L… please don't get yourself killed." Naomi said before he could exit the room completely.

L looked back at her, his hands deep in his pockets.

"I don't plan on it."

_**xxx**_

_**Authors Note:**_ Thank you for the reviews!! I'm so glad you all enjoy this so far. Sorry if there are any typo's, I will try to fix them later. I was in a rush to get this posted. :)

I'm glad that there seem to be a lot of people that feel the same as me about Raye... he was... annoying. :P

Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter (it was hell to title), and constructive criticism and feedback is always appreciated.

Thanks again!!

_**xxx**_


	5. Chapter 5, Letting Go

Disclaimer: … Do you really still need one? If I said I owned Death Note, would you even believe me at this point?

_**Authors Note:**_ Light started To-Oh University in April, three months after L decided to pull the surveillance in the Yagami home. I have no idea what they were doing while they were waiting for term to start…

_**xxx**_

_**Chapter Five: Letting Go**_

_**xxx**_

"Check mate."

Naomi looked down at the chess board.

"No wait… no… wait… Shit! _How? _How did you _do_ that?!"

L's lips twitched, and he played persistently with the jean material at his knees.

"It was very simple… you need to practice more with Ukita-San."

Naomi kept studying the board, her mouth slightly ajar as she tried to find exactly where it was that she had missteped and brought her own defeat. Her eyes were narrowed as they raced across the wooden game space, disbelief and confusion written on her features.

"Would you like to play again?" L questioned, already knowing the answer.

"No! I've lost four times already… I don't think I can handle anymore today. Give me a week and I'll be ready though…"

Naomi was taunting him, but deep down she knew that she would never beat L, whether it be at chess or anything else. But it was still a way to pass the time. And besides, she was sure that L was secretly amused every time she claimed to 'have him right where she wanted him', when really she knew that it was only a matter of time before he strategically positioned himself for a win.

She was also sure that he only let the games go on as long as they did in an attempt to be polite, or to somehow make her think she was getting better at the game.

Two months had gone by since L had decided that he would be joining To-Oh University with Light in the spring. In those two months the task force had followed Kira's actions obstinately, gone after every lead they could think of, and had taken up card and board games, like chess, to try and keep sanity intact. Term wasn't for another month, and it seemed as though the investigation had come to a stand still, with absolutely no new leads to move them elsewhere.

Naomi had started playing chess with Aizawa, and found that they were pretty evenly matched. She'd moved to Matsuda, and was pleased to see that she could easily hold her own with him (he was too interested in talking to concentrate on the game). But Hirokazu Ukita ended up being a formidable opponent. It had surprised her, he hadn't seemed like he had enough patience to sit down and play such a time consuming game, but in reality he was very good at it. She had only beaten him a handful of times, but each time she played him she really did feel like she was getting better at the game, as opposed to playing with L, who she knew she would never beat.

This, however, didn't make the rest of the task force feel any less suspicious of her. They were all guarded and unsure when they were around her, as though they couldn't quite make up their mind. A part of them was saying that L was right, there was no way this woman was Kira. And yet another part was telling them that what Light had said did make sense, and that perhaps she was here to lead them into a false sense of security before eliminating them all. They were conflicted. Shoko Maki was a likable person, and she pulled her weight for the case, but still…

What if she was Kira? Would her likeability matter in the end, after she'd killed them all?

Naomi knew all of what they were thinking, she knew all of what they were saying behind her back, and she could not fault them for it. She understood their reasons for being cautious and guarded, especially when some of them, like Aizawa and Chief Yagami, had families to worry about.

L watched her as she scrutinized the board between them. Usually he would stand and go back to his laptop or the TV screen when she declined another game, but today it seemed he had nothing better to do than sit and study her.

Naomi looked up at him and arched an eyebrow, "What?"

"… Why haven't you gone shopping, Maki-San?"

"Please, call me Shoko," Naomi joked, still not used to L calling her an alias at all times. In fact, he hadn't called her by anything else since the day in the kitchen, and Naomi was feeling more and more as though her name _really was_ Shoko Maki. Down in her gut the thought disturbed and troubled her, and often she found herself thinking her real name in her head, like a mantra, just to know that she remembered it.

"Shoko," L said, non-pulsed, "why haven't you gone shopping? You've been paid, I assume?"

That was an understatement. Her second day on the job Watari had come to her with an envelope full of cash, and it had been enough to last her months, not to mention until the next two weeks when he'd come to her with yet _another_ envelope.

"I-I don't need this much!" She had stammered, her eyes growing large as she looked at the contents.

"This is standard pay for L's employees, I assure you. And we only deal in cash as to not have any checks or credit cards traced back to L," Watari had answered, smiling a little down at her, his eyes twinkling kindly.

Naomi hadn't done much with her pay though. Her clothing was still that of which she brought with her from America (L had it moved to his hotel from her old one the day she joined the task force). The only thing that she had bothered purchasing was a small tin safe that she was now keeping all of her money in, and a bottle of Brandy.

It had seemed like enough at the time.

"I don't need much," Naomi said simply, with a slight shrug of her shoulders.

"A safe and alcohol… no, you don't need much," L's tone was even and calm, but Naomi had the feeling that he wasn't happy.

"I'm not an alcoholic. It was _a_ bottle of Brandy for cripes sake! One bottle!"

L's lips twitched. "Did I say you were an alcoholic? …No. I only ask because you are not taking care of yourself, Maki-San."

"Shoko," Naomi corrected in irritation, "and what do I need?"

"You are losing weight, you need more clothing than the few things you came here with."

"Why?! I'm sorry, but you were the last one I thought would care about personal appearance," Naomi ground out, aware that there were others in the room, and not to let her voice carry.

L's lips twitched once again, and Naomi had to fight down the urge to reach over and slap that "almost smile" off his face. He really was insufferable at times.

"I did not say you were… unkempt. But… you need to get out of this hotel. You are shutting yourself off from the rest of the world, and when the time comes to catch Kira you won't be ready."

Naomi felt her face turn red in an instant.

_Not ready…_Did he really think that? Did he really believe that every waking moment of her life wasn't now spent thinking of Kira?

"…You don't trust me," she said, and it was not a question. Her voice was low, and her head was bent forward, looking at L dead in the eye.

"… Do I look like the kind of man who just trusts people, Maki-San?" L answered, his fingers tracing his lips and his tone seemingly unaffected by her anger. His eyes were skimming the chess board, not looking at her.

"I would never jeopardize this case… I would never leave myself unprepared! Out of anyone in this room I am the _most_ dedicated to this case… and you don't trust me? Why?!"

Her voice was still low, but Aizawa had nonetheless turned his head to look at them from across the room.

L swung a baleful look at the hot headed agent before tuning his attention back to Naomi, his eyes just as wide as always.

"Maki-San… I trust your intuition and I trust your dedication. But you… the way you've been acting… I do not trust it."

There was a pause, each of them looking at the other, Naomi in rage and L in calm clarity. Thoughts ran through Naomi's mind. She contemplated briefly of screaming at him, but was filled with enough lucidity to know that idea was a bad one.

Finally she stood from her chair, its legs creaking against the wood floor noisily, and walked off without saying a word, her shoulders taught and her spine stiff. Aizawa turned his head to watch her leave, his eyes questioning, before he looked at L, who was also watching her go with a thoughtful look on his face.

When Naomi had safely locked herself inside of her room, she finally let out an irritated growl.

"Aahugh! What the hell!" She kicked the side of her bed furiously, angry that nothing broke when she did.

Who the hell did he think he was?! He didn't trust her. She had risked her life to come and speak with him, Kira had killed her fiancé, and he didn't trust her?

"_You are shutting yourself off from the rest of the world, and when the time comes to catch Kira you won't be ready." _

Shutting herself off from the rest of world… look who was talking! He looked pale enough that he might not have ever gone outside. He talked to a group of people on a regular basis, only because he _had_ to. Before this he worked with others very little, and when he did it was without direct contact. He was a recluse and a loner, so who was he to lecture her?

Naomi snarled and made her way to the bathroom, intent on looking in the mirror to prove him wrong. To prove that she had _not_ changed, that she was not acting any differently than she always had.

But when she was faced with her image, she stopped dead in surprise.

…Who was this girl? Who was this woman that looked so tired and worn?

Naomi leaned towards the mirror, her anger slowly ebbing, and inspected her reflection. She prodded at the bags under her bloodshot eyes, and she ran her hands over her sunken in cheeks.

She had stopped wearing make-up (she had never needed much anyway), and she didn't bother doing anything with her hair anymore either. Every morning she'd take a quick five minute shower, brush her teeth and hair, throw her hair into a pony tail, and throw on whatever was clean. She had even stopped her workout, capoeira being pushed to the side with the prospect of other, more important things…

But Kira was still at large… he was still killing people, everyday.

Timidly, Naomi reached for the edges of her shirt and pulled up, exposing her belly and ribcage. Ribs. She could see some of her ribs. She could count them even.

She realized with a jolt that she looked sick. She looked like the walking dead, and L had been trying to tell her that if she kept this up, that's exactly what she'd be. How could someone fight Kira like this? How could they stay sharp and healthy?

Her foot reached under the open counter and dragged out the digital scale. She had always weighed an even 101, proportionate for her small size and height. She stepped onto it and looked down.

_90 lbs._

She'd lost 11 pounds in two months.

And suddenly Naomi felt like she was dying. She could feel her body shrieking in pain of death, and she knew that it was her doing. She had neglected herself for the sake of Kira, and now she looked like a walking corpse, and she felt as though she would drop dead at any minute.

What had she been thinking? This was no way to catch Kira, and this was certainly no way to live.

Without a second thought she was out of the bathroom and scrambling under her bed, pulling out the tin safe and extracting every cash filled envelope in it. L and Watari had been paying her more than they should have, and Naomi realized that it must have been an attempt to get her to go out and spent the money she was earning.

"Shit… shit, shit, shit, shit…"

In the back of her mind she knew she was in a panic, but she stuffed the envelopes into her purse anyway, and headed out of the hotel like a mad woman, furious with herself and furious with Kira.

Kira… the thought entered her mind as she rode the elevator to the first floor and stepped outside into the sunlight.

"Light, you little shit," she muttered, jogging to the strip mall that was a block away. "You've got me acting like an idiot!"

She was disgusted to find that she was running out of breath. She had been one of the fastest FBI agents on the force, and now she was getting tired after a half a block jog…

She cursed both herself and Light Yagami once more before pushing forward, ignoring the stitch in her side and the shortness of breath. She would not die like this. Perhaps she was being overdramatic, but she suddenly felt as though the assessment were true. The way she'd been acting, the way she had been living, she was killing herself.

And it was somewhat of a surprise for her to find that she didn't want to die…

_**xxx**_

It was hours later that Naomi flopped onto her bed, bed springs coiling and squeaking, and shopping bags scattering around her. She'd been gone for a long time, doing nothing more productive than shopping. Clothing, make-up, shoes, anything she had seen that had caught her eye had been purchased. She had even gone to a health shop and bought an excess of cretin and powdered weight gain shake mixes, resolved to start back up her capoeira training and gain back those 11 pounds.

"I'm an idiot…" she muttered, staring blankly up at her ceiling.

She couldn't believe, even now that she had clamed down, how she had been acting. And she had snapped at L, she'd been visibly angry at him, and he had only been trying to help her. He was, in his own way, telling her he was worried about her. And she had thrown his concerns in his face, lashing out at him in resentment and fury. That thought made her feel slightly sick, and deeply ashamed. What was going on? If Raye were alive none of this would be happening to her. If Raye were alive she'd be _married_ by now…

Suddenly it felt as though there were cinder blocks on her eye lids, and there was nothing for her to do but let them shut and fall into a deep, dreamless sleep…

…

It was late when Naomi finally opened her eyes, her clock reading 3 AM. When was the last time she had slept that long? Months, she was sure.

She sat up slowly, the shopping bags rustling around her as she did, and she groaned and fought the urge to lie back down and go to sleep once more. She was… _hungry_. Starving, actually. She kicked off her shoes and stood in the middle of her room for a moment, shaking her head to try and get the last tendrils of slumber to disappear.

Yawning, Naomi grabbed the bag of health supplies and made her way out of her room and down the hall to the living area, which would lead to the kitchen. Her feet were bare and padded softly on the cold wood floor, but L still looked up when she stepped quietly through the door.

"Hello," he said simply, turning his attention back to the laptop that was positioned in front of him. He was seated at the coffee table, his knees hugged to his chest, and the tip of his thumb was inserted in his mouth.

Naomi hesitated before saying, "…L?"

L looked up, his eyes large and questioning.

"I- I'm… do you… want something to eat?" Naomi finally said, the words _'I'm sorry'_ getting caught in her throat.

"…"

"I'll make you pudding, or cookies…" Naomi tempted, wanting him to join her in the kitchen, wanting his company.

Wanting to apologize.

"… Cake?" L asked, his head tilted, and Naomi couldn't help but smile and nod.

"I can make a cake," she said, sending a silent prayer that there was some sort of box mix in the cupboard. There was no way that she could make a cake from scratch.

L stood and shoved his hands in his pockets, following her as she walked to the kitchen.

"Is that cake?" L asked, nodding towards the bag that she laid on the counter.

Naomi chuckled and opened the fridge. "That's not cake, no. It's for me. It's a supplement to put into food or shakes."

L took the edge of the bag between the tips of his fingers and peered inside. "…I hope this isn't for weight _loss_…" he said, and she could feel his eyes on her back.

Naomi turned, bringing deli meat and cheese with her, "No," she replied. "It's to gain weight."

L eyed the meat and cheese that she laid out with large eyes.

"…I want cake," he said, and Naomi shook her head at his childish, and somewhat lighthearted, behavior.

"I'm going to make your cake! This is for me." She chuckled and turned to extract bread and, thankfully, a cake mix.

"You?" His lips twitched as he took a seat on the bar stool at the counter, positioned across from the oven and refrigerator and all the other kitchen appliances, able to watch Naomi easily.

Naomi said nothing for a moment, busying herself by preparing two sandwiches. She slid one across the counter to L, and he stared at her for a long moment before looking down at the plate.

"This is not cake," he said easily, looking back up at her from the dish.

Naomi clutched the chocolate cake box and waived it in front of him.

"No cake until you eat half of that," she said, setting the box down and taking a large and very unlady like bite of her food.

L grimaced and his eyes narrowed, "Are you threatening me with cake, Naomi Misora?" He questioned, and Naomi was suspired to feel a shock run up her spine.

L's lips twitched again, but he kept his eyes narrowed. He'd noticed her chill, and the way she had stiffened when he'd said her name. He knew how it felt though, when you hadn't heard your own birthright in so long, that you yourself almost forgot it until someone else told you.

"…You don't have to eat the sandwich L… I'll still make you the damn cake," Naomi said softly, chewing her food in slow thought.

"You know," she said after a moment, trying hard to get over the…thrill (she shoved that thought away instantly, denying the possibility in haste), of L saying her name. "…You were right…"

"I am always right," L said, picking at the bread on his sandwich with the tips of his fingers. Naomi watched as he brought it up to his lips and nibbled on it, before he made a face and set it back down.

She shook her head, "Your hopeless L, you know that?" Her own sandwich was gone at this point, and she was entertaining the idea of making herself another one after she'd made the cake.

With the thought of the cake, she turned from L and pulled down a bowl from the cupboard. A moment later she had the rest of the ingredients in front of her, and was cracking an egg into the powdered mix.

L watched in interest before asking, "What was I right about this time?"

Naomi rolled her eyes, "You were right… you _are_ right, I'm not taking care of myself. I look… sick."

L watched her closely. She was purposely avoiding his gaze, focusing her attention on the cake mix she was now stirring in alacrity.

Naomi sighed, still not looking up at him. "I'm sorry I was angry with you earlier. I just… I _have_ to catch Kira. I don't… I don't know what else there is but bringing him to justice… and I sacrificed my own health… I didn't mean to do it, I just… did."

"Hmmm…" L hummed, bringing his knees to his chest, his dark hair falling across his eyes. "I probably could have been… tactful, about it. I was worried about you Naomi-San, and you haven't been very receptive of advice lately… But, I understand why you are feeling this way. …Are you going to let me have the spoon?"

Naomi stopped stirring and looked at him, her eyebrows raised high.

"Hold on a second. Let me pour it into a pan first, and then you can have the spoon _and_ the bowl."

She was trying to tease him, talking to him like he was a child, but she was heartily disappointed when he nodded and said, "That's fine."

She shook her head. It was like she had suddenly been placed in the position of babysitting a very intelligent kid.

"…L, how old are you?" she asked suddenly, standing on her tip toes to pull down a round baking pan.

"… Twenty-Five," he responded, his fingers inching over to the cake mix, stealing some on his index finger while her back was turned.

"Stop stealing batter," Naomi scolded without turning around, and L quickly put his finger in his mouth.

Naomi turned and shook her head, grabbing the bowl and pouring the mix into the pan. "You know, its amazing that your only three years younger than me…" she said, spreading the batter evenly over the bowl.

L didn't say anything, but he watched her with large eyes. There was something… _comforting_ about this situation, he realized. Something distinctly relaxing about being in a kitchen with Naomi Misora while she made him cake at four o'clock in the morning.

She slid him the bowl and spoon before turning to slide the pan into the pre-heated oven, setting the timer as she straightened.

L tore his eyes away from her and began scraping the bowl with his spoon, inserting it into his mouth quickly.

Naomi moved around the kitchen, cleaning her cake mess efficiently (L reflected that it looked almost like she was dancing), before she pulled out a blender, milk, and chocolate ice-cream.

"What are you doing?" L asked, interested in the ice-cream.

"Making a shake," she said offhandedly, opening her powdered weight-gain canister, "Want some?"

L's lips twitched and Naomi rolled her eyes.

"Of course you want one, look who I'm asking…" she muttered, adding liberal amounts of ice-cream to the blender, along with enough supplement for two.

"You can stand to gain some weight too," she said, looking at him closely. He probably didn't weight much more than her… when she was healthy.

L said nothing still, pleased to be getting not only cake and cake batter, but a chocolate shake as well.

The blender was loud as it mixed all of the ingredients, and Naomi pulled down two large glasses and filled them to the top.

"Here… and you can give me this," she said, handing L his shake and pulling his long forgotten sandwich to her.

L watched as she took his sandwich and bit into it, not even hesitating. His face was blank as her watched her carefully, his mind running through an overabundance of thoughts.

It was true, he had certainly gone out of his way to meet her two years ago. He'd been interested in her during the BB murder cases. She was smart and strong willed, and extremely kind under her difficult exterior. She had handled the case two years ago with such daring and intelligence, that meeting her then had almost become an _obsession_. Their phone conversations had been interesting, but after Beyond Birthday had been apprehended there had really been no reason to meet her in person.

But he'd gone that day, waiting for her at the subway station, wondering if she would notice him since B had been impersonating him while in her company. And she had. She stopped and looked at him, and she'd started to ask if they had met.

L was quickly knocked back to himself at the remembrance of what had happened next. He'd tried to hug her, and she had literally flung him down a flight of stairs.

'…_Reading too much into her eating your sandwich probably isn't a good idea,'_ he thought, focusing his full attention on slurping down his shake.

Naomi ate with vigor. She had forgotten how good food could be. By the time she finished both the sandwich and the shake, the timer for the cake was going off.

She licked her fingers and extracted the cake from the oven, placing it on the counter and tuning her attention to L.

"… When do we eat the cake?" He asked, his fingers running over his lips.

Naomi laughed, and L was struck with the wonder that it did for her features. She had dimples when she laughed, and she showed off her straight white teeth. Her eyes brightened too. He hadn't seen her laugh… ever.

"You don't make much cake, do you?" Naomi said, grinning at him.

L shook his head, "I don't know how to bake," he said, biting the tip of his thumb, watching her closely.

Naomi's smile grew wider. "Hmmm, something the perfect L can't do. I need to document this…"

L's lips twitched, and Naomi was suddenly aware of how… _happy_ she was. Talking with L, baking for him, teasing him… it was fun. He was her friend. A friend that didn't trust her (or only trusted her on certain things), true, but a friend nonetheless.

"The cake has to cool, L. Then I'll put icing on it, and you can have a piece… So, where did you learn to play chess like that?" She asked, enjoying the buoyancy of the conversation, trying to keep his attention away from the cake.

"… I learned at the orphanage I lived in as a child," L answered, the tip of his thumb held between his teeth.

"Oh… well, your very good. I don't think I know anyone who could beat you."

L tilted his head, "I do."

Naomi's eyebrows raised, "Oh! I think I'd like to see that with my own eyes."

L's head shook, "No, you wouldn't. Seeing him wouldn't mean good things, I assure you."

Naomi tried to think of who he could possibly be talking about, and her only conclusion was Kira.

"Light? You think _Light_ could beat you in chess?" Naomi's face was doubtful, and she looked as though the thought was absurd.

"Light-Kun cannot beat me in anything. Not him."

Naomi chuckled at the certainty in his tone, but when the lilt in conversation came, her smile disappeared. It seemed that the mere mention of Light Yagami had the same effect of ruining a moment as did a needle to a balloon.

"L… what do you think is going to happen?" Naomi asked, and her voice was serious.

L seemed to think about it for a moment, his eyes going upwards to stare at the ceiling.

"…I believe that Kira… that Light, is too smart to let me catch him just yet. Even when I reveal myself to him he will find a way out of this, I'm sure."

Naomi took in a breath. "Isn't that bad for you?" She asked.

L averted his eyes form the ceiling to look at her, his face completely blank.

"Not really," he said, his hand coming to rest on his knees. "It would be… complicating… if I did not anticipate that this would be Kira's next move. But since I do know, I can plan ahead. I will be ready."

"…I guess."

Naomi thought over the situation, worry and doubt still nagging her.

"L," she began, "how are we going to catch him? Light is too cautious, too careful. He's never going to incriminate himself. And if we do get close… L, he'll kill you."

"…I know."

He had said it so simply, so passively, that Naomi was shocked for a moment.

"… You _**know**_. You know and you're still going to go to that college? Why?" She couldn't help that her voice had become somewhat heated in her question.

"He cannot stay perfect forever Naomi-San," L answered, his voice calm. "Eventually he will slip… and I have an advantage."

"Oh? What's that?"

"…You."

"…"

The stretching silence was long. Naomi stood there, stunned and confused into saying nothing, and L stared back at her, waiting until she would ask her next question.

"… _Me_? How? How am I any kind of advantage?" She finally asked, her voice hesitant.

"He is afraid of you Naomi Misora. You figured Light Yagami out before anyone else. You had the puzzle solved before I even had the pieces. You are alive and well, when you should be dead, and Light knows that you are trouble for him. And what's more, Light knows that there is nothing he can do but try to shift the blame to you. It is a weak and pointless move, because I know that you are not Kira. He is afraid of you Naomi-San, and if anyone can make him confess or slip… its you."

Naomi's eyes were wide, and her hands clutched the edge of the counter so hard that her knuckles were white. Hadn't he said that he didn't trust her earlier? He'd said;

"_Maki-San… I trust your intuition and I trust your dedication. But you… the way you've been acting… I do not trust it." _

"Why? Why do you trust me with this? I… I've been acting very stupid lately. Why would you think I could handle this?"

"You seem to have realized that your actions were taking their toll on you. I have always trusted you in this, Naomi-San. … In fact, the only thing I do not trust you with is yourself. …you are not very kind to your body. …Or your mind. Please, stop calling yourself stupid. Matsuda is stupid, you are not."

Naomi sucked in a deep breath. "I've been screwing up your advantage," she said, her eyes never wavering from his.

"… No. You've been… mourning. It's understandable."

"…"

Naomi thought about that. All of the reasons she had decided to join the task force were because of Raye. But at the same time, Raye was keeping her from bringing his death to justice. Thoughts and memories of him were holding her back, making her depressed and despondent.

"I'm going to have to let Raye go… aren't I?" She asked, looking down for the first time since the conversation had turned serious.

L sighed, his fingers going to his lips and his eyes narrowing just slightly.

"…Eventually," he answered, watching her carefully. "But… when you are ready Naomi. Not now..."

There was a pause before he continued, "Although, I would like to see you taking better care of yourself. …And your capoeira, I would like to see you start training in that again. Every hotel we have been to so far has had an exercise facility… It would be comforting for me to know that you can defend yourself against Light Yagami. I am sure he believes that because you are a woman he can always just take care of you… the normal way…"

Naomi looked up at him, their eyes meeting.

"I understand," she said, her voice low.

L nodded, and his eyes went past her to focus on something new.

"So…," he began, and Naomi turned to see what had shifted his attention, smiling slightly when she noticed the forgotten pan that was sitting, cooling, on top of the oven.

"When can I have my cake?"

_**xxx**_

_**Authors Note:**_ You know, I love these reviews. You guys are really wonderful. I hope I'm still keeping everyone in character. I swear L gets playful sometimes… He stole Misa's cake! :)

I pretty sure it was obvious who could beat L in chess. Come on… who loves games? ;)

Hope you like this chapter! I really love writing this! It's a lot of fun, and this is a nice long chapter for all you great people. Next chapter will have L already at To-Oh University, that way we can keep progressing. It will take a bit longer for the romance aspect to pick up, sorry. I mean, even though I didn't care for Raye, she loved him. And L isn't a rebound. Ha-ha.

Also, I got a request to do some art for this story, but I am not the artistic type. I drew a stick figure L and a stick figure Naomi. L had wild hair and Naomi had boobs. I laughed myself silly and then threw it away. If anyone out there wants to do some art for this, I would be flattered, but there's no way I can do it. I'm not very good. :(

Please review, but no flames!!


	6. Chapter 6, Moments of Impulse

_**Chapter Six: Moments of Impulse**_

_**xxx**_

Tennis.

They were playing _tennis_.

That's what L had just said over the phone, telling her that he was getting ready to play a game of _tennis_ with Light Yagami.

"… Why tennis?"

"Because I am good at tennis, Maki-San."

Naomi rolled her eyes to the back of her head, glancing covertly across the hotel room at Chief Yagami and Agent Aizawa as she did so. Neither of the agents were paying much attention to her, but Ukita was sitting at the coffee table, watching aptly as she paced back and forth in front of him.

"How is this helping you figure out whether or not Light Yagami is Kira?" Naomi asked in distaste, trying to make her voice carry across the room without making it obvious. Her eyes shifted from corner to corner of the lobby area, and she was disappointed to see that all agents but Ukita were still in deep conversation.

"Hmmm…You are trying too hard, Maki-San. Attempt to make this natural, please… And I _know_ Light is Kira. I want him to know that I know this…tennis seems the best way to establish it."

"…"

Naomi sighed into the phone, stopping her endless pacing and tilting her head forward, almost as if in defeat.

"I assume you know what your doing, but… please be careful. I know its only tennis but…"

"Maki-San, I will be sure to stretch."

Naomi lifted her head, her eyes narrowed at the wall in front of her.

"…Did you just make a joke?"

"I would never make light of this situation. …Please tell Agent Ukita to stop ogling you. I know he is doing so at the moment, and while I normally wouldn't mind I don't think you've even noticed…"

Naomi snapped her head in Ukita's direction, amazed to see him staring plaintively at her rear end.

"Hey!" She snapped, "do some work you pervert!"

Ukita jumped in his seat, the file he'd had laying in his lap scattering to the floor. The rest of the agents in the room turned their attention to Naomi and Ukita, the latter who was now grabbing at the strewn papers and shaking his head in fervent denial.

"Hmmm, just as I thought…" L murmured into her ear, and Naomi focused her attention back to the phone, aware that she now had every agent's attention.

"What the hell are you doing?" She snapped heatedly into the mouth piece, not bothering to lower her voice. "Why are you out playing _tennis_ when I'm stuck at headquarters with a letch and a bunch of men who hate me? Why?! Just bring the little bastard back here and I'll _beat_ a confession out of him…"

"…"

The pause only lasted a moment before L said complacently, "…You are very subtle Maki-San. Tell me, how many agents heard you say that?"

"All of them," Naomi said, her voice angry, and she worked very hard at hiding her smile, knowing that she had finally drawn the attention of all occupants in the room to her.

"Very good. Then I think this conversation is at an end. Thank you for your help Maki-San."

"Whatever."

Naomi Misora let her cell phone snap shut and stormed out of the room, only letting herself begin to laugh once she was shut safely in her dwelling.

She reflected that she had become a much better actor in the last three months. Naomi thought back to the conversation they'd had the night before, in the kitchen of their current hotel room, and she snorted with laughter once more as she flopped onto her bed, her feet kicking in the air...

_**xxx**_ _(…flashback begins…)_

_(…The previous night 04/06/2004, 11:53 pm …)_

_Naomi looked across the counter at L, who was eating a cookie with vigor, unfazed by what he had just told her. _

"… _Aggressive? You want me to be aggressive?" Naomi asked, her voice timid and her brows knit. Hadn't he said all this time that they needed to be discreet and cautious? Where had this come from? _

"_Yes. I have realized that in the coming days Light will have a number of people telling him that they believe he is not Kira," L said, biting into his cookie. "…His father, other agents. And while I suspect him, he has anticipated this. He has prepared himself to expect my misgiving of him, and he will continue to portray innocence." _

_L looked up at her now, swallowing loudly and smiling just slightly, his hands placed, as always, on his knees. "You, however, he will not know how to react to. I would like you to be openly hostile to Light Yagami. I want you to distract him, anger him, get under his skin. Anything that may cause him to let his guard down enough that he will show us his true nature." _

_Naomi stared at him, both of her eyebrows now raised high. _

"_You want me to be a bitch," she clarified, reaching to the plate between them and picking up cookie of her own. _

"…_Have you lost your mind?" She continued, chewing slowly in thought. "I'm supposed to be professional. I'm supposed to believe that Light Yagami was trying to help me." _

"_No, actually, your not. There is no reason for him to believe that I would not tell you that he has accused you as Kira. And you are under my employ. You may do anything you wish as long as I do not disapprove." _

"_Hunh, you sound like my father," Naomi said dryly, arching a brow. _

_L looked at her, eyes wide. "… Did you just make a joke?" _

_Naomi shook her head and smiled. "You kill me sometimes. Yes, I made a joke… sort of." _

"_This situation should not be taken lightly Maki-San." _

_Naomi rolled her eyes, "Okay, okay! What do you want me to do?" _

"_I will call you tomorrow. Please initiate our new tactic then. I would like you to speak of Light in a negative way. Make sure that the task force is around when you do. It will seem odd of you are suddenly opposed the boy so passionately... even though you've always been ill disposed of him. We will have to tip them off before he is in our presence. We don't want this to look like an act…" _

_Naomi stopped chewing suddenly and looked at him, her head cocked to the side. _

"_Wait… I can say whatever I want to Light? I can tell him I think he's Kira and be just as horrible as I'd like?" _

"…_Yes." _

_Naomi laughed, and it had a devious quality in it that L hadn't heard before._

"_No acting required."_

_**xxx**__ (…flashback ends…) _

Naomi smiled to herself, clutching the phone in her hands and curling her legs into the fetal position. She adjusted her head deeper into her pillow and sighed. She had a feeling that releasing some of the pent up anger she'd been carrying around, and on the boy who had caused it no less, would be deeply satisfying. Saying whatever she wanted to Light Yagami, especially with L's blessing, was so appealing that it made her toes curl.

How would he react once he realized that she suspected him? What would he say when she told him flat out that she believed him to be Kira? He would be shocked, she was sure. L was right, this was something that he would not be expecting. He would be thinking back to the intelligent woman he had spoken to months ago, polite and open. Not the new hostile agent he would be greeted with. It would be a curve ball for him, and while it may do nothing in the end, it would certainly make Naomi feel better about the situation. She was dying to know how he would take this new Shoko Maki.

But however Light reacted, Naomi could hardly wait.

_**xxx**_

When she awoke hours later, it was from the deafening pounding on her bedroom door. For a long moment, in the haze of sleep that was still fighting to remain, Naomi was confused. It was very late afternoon, yes, but since she was planning a late night discussing tactics with L, she'd decided an early rest would be a good idea. But the moment passed rather quickly once she realized that the pounding on her door was accompanied by the panicked voice of Agent Matsuda, yelling out, "Maki-San, answer the door!"

Immediately she was out of her bed, tripping over her loose blankets and stumbling in a panic to the door, the only thought running through her mind being, _'L! Something's happened to L!'_

She ripped at the latch in her haste to unlock it, and the door flung open to reveal a wide eyed and shaken looking Matsuda.

"What happened to L? Is he hurt, is he okay?!"

Matsuda looked bewildered for a moment and shook his head.

"Not Ryuzaki," he said, "The Chief! He's had a heart attack!"

Not Ryuzaki…

Not L…

Naomi was somewhat ashamed to feel relief flood into her, claming her erratic heart considerably.

"Chief Yagami? He-he's had a heart attack?" Her voice quavered as she asked, and she stood aside to let Matsuda enter her room, following behind him as he walked past her.

Matsuda nodded, standing awkwardly in the corner as she searched for her boots.

"The rest of the team is already there, except for Ukita. He's at headquarters. And Watari already called Ryuzaki."

"The Chief… was… was it Kira?"

Matsuda shook his head slightly, and Naomi thought that he looked exceptionally distressed.

"We aren't sure, but we don't think so," the young agent said, shuffling his feet. "The Chief looks like he's going to be ok… just a minor heart attack. That's what EMT told Aizawa, anyway. I guess it happened at the NPA building."

Naomi tried to hide the gratefulness that was surly showing on her face by turning to slip on her boots.

L was safe.

She grabbed her shoulder bag and turned to Matsuda, who stood waiting with nervously shifting feet.

"I'm ready," she said simply, knowing that they would also be making a trip to the hospital.

The young man nodded and turned, Naomi following him at a brisk pace. He looked scared and frightened, and she felt a small twang of guilt for feeling happiness that it was Chief Yagami and not L.

_Happiness_. Sheer and utter happiness that L was unharmed.

She was going to hug him when she saw him, she just knew it.

_**xxx**_

L sat next to Light Yagami in a very calm manner, but his mind was racing a mile a minute.

'_Naomi cannot come to this hospital. I cannot leave now to call Watari or else I would, but she cannot see Light Yagami as of yet. She will cause a scene. I doubt very much that she knows how she will react when she first sees Light, but it will not go well. …This is not the time to pick a fight with Kira…' _

Light was speaking with his father, and Soichiro Yagami was confirming that Ryuuka Hideki was indeed L, or Ryuzaki, as the task force called him.

L listened and spoke with a half ear, knowing that Naomi could very well be in the building at that moment, headed to the room to check on the health of the Chief of the NPA.

"Visiting hours ended 10 minutes ago. You'll have to come back tomorrow…"

The nurse was polite, and L nodded and stood, leading Light away from his father, happy to get the boy he was sure to be Kira far away from anywhere Naomi could be.

Once outside, Watari parked and waiting at the curb, Light began stating his innocence, and L listened with hunched shoulders and inexpressive eyes.

Light sure talked a lot…

"Yeah okay, how's this? Lock me up in a place with no TV or media access for a month and see what happens."

L stood facing the car, opening the door and processing the information that Light had just given him, forgetting about Naomi for a moment.

"I guess anyone would desperately want to prove their innocence," L said eventually, turning his head to look at the young boy.

L went on to tell him about the immorality of his suggestion, and even told him that he was beginning _not_ to suspect him as Kira, lie that it was.

"Don't worry, if you are not Kira we will know soon," L said, moving his body as he began to slip into the car.

"Ryuzaki!!"

L froze, his feet still on the curb, knowing exactly whom the voice belonged to.

Naomi was running to him, her hair flying out behind her, and apparently she had remembered his warning to _not_ call him L when they were in public. She looked worried and glad all at once, and L moved away from the car and onto the sidewalk, preparing himself for how she would react once she realized that it was _Light_ _Yagami_ that was standing in front of him.

But she did not stop running once she came closer to the idled car, and flew past Light to wrap her arms around L's neck, holding him tightly as she buried her head in his shoulder.

She was _hugging_ him.

L felt paralyzed, his hands still deep in his pockets as he stood and did nothing while she embraced him tightly, his eyes wide as ever. She obviously did not know that Light was the one he'd been talking to, either that or she just didn't care. L tried to catch a glimpse of Light Yagami's stunned face, but it was too hard to focus on anything but Naomi warm against him.

Slowly, and still in a daze, L removed his hands from his pockets and placed them lightly on her sides.

"I thought you were dead," she said, her voice muffled in his shoulder, and L felt her fingertips dig into his back.

She'd heard something had happened, and she'd been worried about him. She had thought he was dead. A normal reaction for someone who had already lost so much? They were close, after all. Much closer than L had ever been with anyone besides Watari.

"Maki-San, I am unharmed…." L said softly, and leaned his head down to her ear, trying not to distract himself by the faintly flowered scent of her hair.

"Please," he said quietly, his voice low enough that there was no way Light could hear him.

"Yagami-Kun is here, and I would appreciate if you did not act as we spoke of previously," L told her cryptically, hoping she would understand that being "aggressive" at the moment was _not_ what he had in mind.

His voice was barely a breath against her ear, but Naomi was immediately pulling away from him, jumping out of his arms and turning to face Light in surprise and alarm.

She hadn't even seen him.

She had exited the NPA car that Matsuda had been driving to instantly see L, entering his own car and looking as though he were about to leave, and she hadn't been able to help but call out for him. She hadn't even _seen_ Light Yagami there, standing in front of him as plain as day.

"L-Light!"

Light looked at her, his own expression mirroring her own.

"Shoko…"

The pause was awkward, and the silence was dragging.

"Visiting hours are closed, Maki-San," L said, stepping between the two and lightly placing his hand on Naomi's arm, guiding her to the car. "I will be speaking with you soon, Light-Kun."

They were in the car in an instant, and Watari pulled away without giving Light a chance to say anything, leaving him standing on the curb to watch them go.

It was a full minute before either of them spoke.

"I…I'm sorry, L," Naomi said softly, hanging her head and letting her long hair fall and cover her face.

L looked at her, his knees pulled to his chest, and his eyes widened ever so slightly.

"…This is not a problem. In fact… this might help…"

He brought his thumb to his mouth and bit on the tip of it, and Naomi lifted her head to look at him. He was looking straight ahead now, clearly deep in thought, and Naomi was hesitant to ask him to clarify.

"How… h-how does this help?" She finally asked, her voice shaking slightly.

L turned his head to look at her, and he saw in her face worry and humiliation.

"You did nothing wrong, Maki-San. I will explain at the hotel."

He hated that she was worried, and he hated that she thought she had done something wrong. He had just been… surprised. Hugging had never gone well for them, and actually being on the receiving end of it was shocking. The fact that no one was bodily injured was probably a miracle…

The rest of the short car ride was spent in silence, dusk falling over the city completely now.

Once back at the hotel they both walked straight for the kitchen, neither hesitating in their destination, for they both knew exactly where they were going. L was taking his seat at the table that occupied this current hotels kitchen, and Naomi was pulling out ice cream from the freezer, along with two spoons.

She seated herself at the polished cherry wood table, across from L, and sat the tub of chocolate ice cream between them. She refused to meet his gaze, setting her spoon on the table and averting her eyes from him and the dessert.

"You did nothing wrong," L said simply, and Naomi's jaw clenched as if she didn't believe it.

"Naomi. You did nothing wrong," L repeated, and her head turned to meet his penetrating stare, just as he expected she would with his use of her real name.

"I didn't even see him," she said softly, biting her lip in nervous habit.

L ran his fingers across his lips, looking up at the ceiling in thought.

"…This will work out in our favor, I think. Light will go through his own speculation, and he will conclude that we are close. He will know that we trust each other. You will reveal to him that you believe him to be Kira… and in turn, Light Yagami will try to befriend you…"

L's eyes swooped to meet her own, and Naomi looked questioning at him.

"Befriend me?"

"Hmmm, yes. You see… he will be hoping that you are aware of my real name."

Naomi's eyes widened.

"He'll want to gain my trust," she said, her hands clenching on the sides of the table. "He'll want me to be an ally… and he'll try to get me to reveal information about you… so he can use it as Kira."

"My thoughts exactly," L said, his lips twitching. "You could feed him false information, and perhaps we could try and catch him in the act…"

"And since I don't know your real name," Naomi continued, excited now that she thought of the trap that could be laid, "I would never be in any danger of giving away information that would harm you."

This statement struck L. Harm him…?

"Naomi Misora … please do not worry so much for my safety. The more I think about it, the more I am convinced that Light Yagami will not be the cause of my death."

Naomi breathed deeply and averted her eyes from his once more.

"You don't understand," she said softly, "I thought you were dead. For… for a moment I thought you were _dead_. We'd talked on the phone, and I'd fallen asleep… I thought that- that he'd killed you…"

L bit harshly on his thumb, watching her in utter bewilderment.

He wanted to hug her again. The hug she had given him hadn't really been returned, his hands settling limply on her sides, and he wanted to return the fervor of her embrace. He wanted her to know that he appreciated her concern.

…Because they were friends?

Something stirred in him, and he knew what it was without ever having experienced it. He'd felt it two years ago while working with her on the BB murder cases. It wasn't obsession…

It was like.

Not love, for that was very cliché. Friendship, yes, they did have that, in an odd way albeit. But L found himself _liking_ her more than a friend and less like a work partner. He found himself looking at her less in distracted thought and more in admiration and awe. He found _pleasure_ in looking at her.

And in the past weeks he'd noticed Ukita's similar roving eyes that hadn't been as well hidden as his own.

He'd been… annoyed.

He thought of what he had said to Naomi earlier over the phone: _"Please tell Agent Ukita to stop ogling you. I know he is doing so at the moment, and while I normally wouldn't mind I don't think you've even noticed…" _

He had been childish and told her this when he _knew_ Agent Ukita would be watching her, and when he _knew_ she would cause a scene. Not only did this have two separate purposes, one with the goal of drawing attention to her so that she could verbally abuse Light, but also because he _hated_ that men looked at her that way…

…Even though he was often finding himself looking at her in the very same hungry manner.

It was alarming, coming to the self realization that not only did he _like_ Naomi in that fashion, but that he was _jealous_.

"I think I am going to get some rest," L said suddenly, and Naomi looked at him in surprise, her eyes traveling to the untouched ice cream that sat melting between them.

"_What_?"

L stood and slipped his hands into his pockets, looking at her with huge blank eyes. He was eager to get away from her, and loath to leave her side all at the same time.

And abandoning the ice cream was also a horrifying sacrifice.

"I need to think of what's going to happen next… There is still much that needs to be covered, and I want to make sure this plan will work," it was a weak excuse, seeing as he was already 90 percent sure that the plan would work, but he had to get away.

Naomi let the shock ebb away and stood, walking around the table to him, and L stiffened as she came near.

"Thank you, L," she said softly, looking up at him with grateful eyes. There was a small smile on her lips, and everything about her at that moment was open for him to see. The trust she had in him was evident, and L knew that she would do anything to protect him. It was quite possible that she would sacrifice her own life to spare him, and even thinking this made L's chest tighten. Why in the world would anyone be so concerned for him? The loyalty and devotion she had for him, what was the _purpose_? He had done nothing but made her life more complicated and troublesome.

Suddenly, the need to protect this woman, to keep her safe and alive, became overwhelming for him. If anything happened to her, if Light ever figured out her real name, he would hold himself completely responsible. She had sacrificed so much already, and L refused to believe that her life would be included in the end as well. He refused to even entertain the idea that she could die at the hands of Kira. And there was nothing for it, with her looking up at him with all that trust and conviction…

He was going to hug her.

His arms came out of his pockets and reached for her shoulders before he could stop himself, pulling her to him and holding her there tightly. He could feel her stiffen against him, but a moment later her body relaxed in his arms, and she snaked her hands around his waist to lay them flat on his back.

"I am sorry you were worried, Naomi-San," L said softly, dipping his head so that his chin rested lightly on her shoulder.

Naomi said nothing, only clutched at him tightly and nodded, her chin bumping his against his chest. L breathed in deeply, once more catching the light scent of her flowery hair, before he began pulling away.

"Thank you for everything, L," Naomi said, looking up at him with large eyes, her arms still wrapped around him.

L nodded and said nothing in return, looking at her for only a moment before moving out of her embrace and tuning to the door. He stepped out of the kitchen, departing the small room and the closeness of Naomi in a hurry. He didn't want to leave her, not really, but since he had already said that he wanted to get some rest, there was nothing to do but leave and _actually get some rest_, even though he was far from tired, and his mind was racing with thought after desperately unremitting thought.

'_I do not believe anything will come of this,'_ L thought to himself as he made his way to his own personal quarters, hands shoved into his pockets and a small scowl on his face.

'_She is vulnerable as of right now, and she's trying to get over a fiancé that Kira murdered, and whose death was caused because I ordered him to follow Light Yagami…' _

L wondered briefly if Naomi Misora had ever blamed him for Raye Penber's death.

'_She would have said something,'_ he thought assuredly, shoving the idea and the guilt away and opening the door to his room, walking inside and flipping the latch. It was sparse but luxurious, and it looked exactly as it had the last time he'd been in it, which had been four days ago. The large bed was made, his closet door was wide open, and the windows long tan curtains were firmly shut.

L turned on a bedside lamp and sat heavily on the edge of the king sized monstrosity. He really didn't need a bed this big, with its light green feather down comforter and its over abundance of floral printed pillows. It was certainly an unnecessary amenity, considering he barely used it anyway. And when he actually did find the time to make use of it with a few sparse hours of sleep, he never strayed from the edge of the bed, ready to leap out of it in case of an emergency… and if not to leap then to move very quickly.

L sighed, and then suddenly he was stock still, a thought coming to him that was all at once so very appealing that it made a chill run down his spine.

'_I wonder what Naomi would look like, lying there on the other side of this bed?' _

L's eyes widened, and he couldn't help but glance behind him at the unoccupied area, the image of her body, inexplicably naked, stretched out on top of the comforter. Her dark hair would be fanned out across a pillow, and her unflawed complexion would be flattering against the light color of the blanket…

"Damn," he breathed out, standing and moving away from the large bed, heading quickly to the bathroom, his heart thumping wildly in his chest.

'_This is nothing… I am over reacting…' _L looked in the mirror and grimaced, beginning to pace back and forth in front of the bath tub. He bit harshly on his thumb, staring down at his bare feet as he paced.

'_She is an employee and a friend… I should not be feeling this way towards her at all… but still…' _

L's jaw clenched when he realized that he was even briefly entertaining the thought of Naomi returning his feelings, a fantasy in which she would be coming to his room and knocking on his door, professing her undying love…

'_Stupid… this is stupid…' _

But it was shocking when his bedroom door was suddenly being knocked on, and he felt as though he may be imaging the light tapping on his door.

He headed to the front door and peered through the peep hole, his head jerking back when he saw Naomi through it.

'_…?'_

Slowly he unlatched the lock and opened the door, careful to use the tips of his fingers while holding it open.

"Shoko."

Naomi raised an eyebrow, and it was then that he saw the large bowl of ice cream that she held in her hands.

"For you," she said, holding it in front of him and grinning, and L felt his chest tighten once more, and his heart began beating as if it were trying to make its way out of his chest. Still, he remained passive.

"… Not that I'm complaining," he said, taking the bowl and ignoring the way their fingers brushed against one another during the exchange, "but… is there a motive for this, Maki-San?"

Naomi's grin grew wider and she shook her head, her hair swaying slightly as she did so.

"No reason," she said, shrugging and turning away from him, making her way back down the hall.

She had almost turned the corner, L watching her wide eyed as she left, before the detective called out, "Maki-San."

Naomi looked over her shoulder, her eyes questioning.

L paused for a moment before saying, "…Thank you."

There was more gratefulness in it than for just ice cream, and Naomi must have know it, because she nodded, and L could have sworn that even from this distance he saw her cheeks flush with bright red color.

Then she was gone, and L was shutting and latching his door once more.

"Hmmm…Shower… I need a cold shower," he said out loud, staring at the closed door, almost overwhelmed with all the thoughts that were racing through him.

Then he looked down at the bowl in his hands, filled high with chocolate ice cream and fudge syrup.

'_After the ice cream, I think…' _

_**xxx**_

_Authors Note:_ Thank you all soooo much for the wonderful reviews, I appreciate every single one of them! I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and again, I hope L was in character. He's really very hard to write! I kept having to go back and read some of his dialogue in the manga, and I'm still not sure that I got him down pat… :(

Thank you for the offer to do some art, Blu Rai! I can't wait to see it. Trust me, anything is better than my stick figures, and I'm really flattered that you want to do something for this. If anyone else would like to do some fan art, be my guest! Just let me know so I can post a link, that way everyone can view it!

Again, I love you all! Now, please go review! It's my 23rd birthday tomorrow, and that would be the BEST gift! :) Although, my ego probably doesn't need it… ha-ha.

Next chapter, second Kira! :)


	7. Chapter 7, Something New

**Disclaimer:** In case any of you were confused by the lack of disclaimer in the last chapter, guess what? I don't own Death Note!! So sad. :(

I do, however, have L tied up in my bedroom… (Sigh), I'm such a liar...

**Authors Note:** My power was out for a week because of Ike!! How crappy is that? Hope you all made it through the hurricane in tact!

So, I think some of you may think I was rushing the romance in the last chapter, but just to let you know… no romance!! L knows he likes Naomi (he's smart like that), but lets not forget that Naomi is still in mourning, and she hasn't really begun to see L that way… yet. :)

I'm changing only a couple things in the story line (mostly dialogue), and I'll explain them at the end of the chapter… you may not even catch them!

_Italics_ are thinking. Heavy **M** material for lots of cursing.

_**xxx **_

_**Chapter Seven: Something New**_

Light Yagami liked to think of himself as a calm and impenetrable force. He was collected, composed, and civil at all times. Flipping out when L had discovered Kira on national television had been a one time event, or so he had thought.

But standing there on the curb, watching L's car speed away, made Light want to scream in passionate frustration and anger.

Shoko Maki had hugged L.

'_Son of a Bitch,'_ he thought, clenching his jaw as the car turned a sharp corner and drove out of sight.

'_L and Shoko… friends? Like that? Damnit,' _he snarled noisily, and from behind him Light heard Ryuk chuckle.

"You know," Ryuk said deviously, coming forward to stand next to Light, his leathery Death God wings flapping. "If you had the Shinigami eyes, you could have killed them already."

Lights eyes narrowed to slits and his lip curled in disgust. Take an enticing deal and forfeit half of his life? There was no way he'd _ever_ do that, not even in the most extreme of circumstances. He'd have to reiterate that to Ryuk later, remind him that it was not an option, but for now he only clenched his jaw tighter and pivoted on the balls of his feet, walking with pounding and furious steps back to his home.

'_What the hell is going on? I thought she said that she'd never met L? Now they're hugging?' _Light snorted and his jaw popped with the force of his clenched teeth. What did this mean? That they were friends? That they were (as impossible as it seemed) lovers?

'_This is complicating. And she looked surprised to see me, maybe even angry… damn,'_ Ryuk was laughing behind him, and Light wondered briefly if it would be a good idea to turn and take a swing at him. Probably not.

What could he do now? If L believed that he was Kira, there was no doubt in his mind that Shoko would have come to the same conclusion. Especially if L had told her that he was trying to blame her as Kira.

'_Not good, not good, not good…'_

She had all the information she'd needed to tie him to Raye Penber's death. The fact that her late fiancé was following him, that he lived so near to the Spaceland bus stop, that one of his ex-girlfriends had suddenly disappeared… They more than likely had enough to legitimately suspect him, and possibly bring him into custody… But L was more than likely waiting for more, waiting for a confession or a concrete clue. Something that could tie him, without a shadow of a doubt, as Kira.

'_Damn, damn, damn…'_

A light breeze blew strands of his brown hair into his face, and Light shoved them away in annoyance. His hands were then clenched into tight balls inside of his coats pockets, and his nails were digging into the skin there, leaving half moon indentations that were sure to start bleeding if he didn't let up.

In his mind ran thousands of rampaging thoughts, and through it all the image of Shoko, running full speed into L's arms, was replaying over and over again. The spilt second that he'd seen her face, overcome with happiness and relief. The way she had buried her head in his shoulder, and how gratified her tone was when she had said, _"I thought you were dead," _

"Damn," he said out loud, and Ryuk laughed harder behind him, bone jewelry clanking as he heaved and gasped in amusement.

Fucking Shinigami. Fucking L. Fucking _bitch_ Shoko Maki.

It was almost funny (except that it wasn't at all) that neither of those names were correct. L couldn't possibly be the detective's real name, and Light _knew_ that Shoko was not correct either. The fact that she was still alive, able to hug his arch enemy, was proof enough that her name was an alias.

…

Light's thinking slowed down, as well as his angry steps. Shoko and L… together? Friends? Close enough that each would know the others real name?

Possible. Probable, even. If he couldn't get close enough to Ryuzaki to find out his real name, perhaps he could befriend Shoko Maki. Right now she more than likely suspected him as Kira, but if he could convince her otherwise… perhaps she would loose footing and expose L's real name. And alternatively, if L could be tricked somehow into telling him Shoko's actual name, he could hold her life ransom until L's identity was proven.

'_Let your weaknesses become your strengths. Use what they'd like you to believe is their upper hand, against them. They're friends now? Well then, they know too much about one another, and one of them is bound to slip at some point. Shoko Maki is a women, she is weak and in mourning, if anyone is going to tell me L's real identity, it's her.'_

Light smiled then, a thin smile that narrowed his eyes and made his face look calculating and devious and sinful.

'_Shoko Maki… you are my tool, and I will use you until I have what I want.'_

He came to the front of his house then and opened the gate, ignoring Ryuk's continuous _hyuks_.

'_And then,'_ he thought, walking up the yard and to the front door, _'your dead.'_

One way or another, she was dead.

Even if he didn't have her real name…

_**xxx**_

_(04/18/2004)_

Naomi looked at L, her head cocked to the side.

"You eat like a crazy person," she said plaintively, and the task force members also lifted their heads to look at the young detective.

The spoon, heaping with chocolate chiffon cake, stopped halfway on its journey to L's mouth, and the detective looked across the coffee table at Naomi Misora.

"…Are you implying that I am crazy, Maki-San?"

Naomi smirked and shrugged, looking back down at her files and ignoring both him and the rest of the task force.

L watched her for a moment, eyes narrowing just slightly as he tried to decide weather or not she was taunting him, before he shoveled the cake into his mouth with added vigor.

"_Childish,_" Naomi muttered under her breath, her lips twitching, and this time L's eyes narrowed to thin slits.

"…Have you found anything of interest, Maki-San?" L asked through a mouth full of cake, almost as though he were pointing out the fact that she _hadn't_ found a thing in the file she'd been staring at for the last half hour.

"I think the most information we'll get on this case is when we have Light Yagami here at headquarters, confessing himself as Kira," Naomi replied, not bothering to look up from her file, and both Matsuda and Ukita flinched as she said it, while L only stared for a moment before returning to his cake, his expression void.

Agent Ukita shifted uncomfortably in his seat, looking between both Shoko Maki and L, before he stood and said, "Going for a smoke, you coming Aizawa?"

Aizawa nodded, grumbling as he followed the shorter agent outside, and Matsuda looked uncomfortable sitting by himself with only L and Naomi for company, Mogi being at headquarters and chief still in the hospital recovering.

Outside the hotel, however, Ukita was lighting up and sighing, looking at Aizawa with raised eyebrows.

"Is it just me, or does she really hate the Chief's son?"

Aizawa scowled, "She's a fucking loony. Why the hell aren't we investigating _her_?"

Ukita inhaled and shook his head, blowing smoke out of his nose before he said, "No, she's not Kira, Aizawa. No way. She's just… angry. And who can blame her, really? The situations fucked up… and blaming Light is probably better than not knowing who to blame."

Aizawa looked at Ukita for a moment, eyebrows raised.

"…You like this woman? I mean, I know you guys talk but… she's like a black widow, you should probably watch your back. Plus, she called you a pervert."

Ukita chuckled and shook his head once more, blowing more smoke into the air and shifting on his feet, "I have some theories on that, all of which consist of her trying to let the task force know that she suspects Light without a shadow of a doubt. I really don't know what's going on but… I think she wants us all to know where she stands… And I think she wants us to know that she's going to be actively accusing Light Yagami… I don't think there's anything in her that wants to hide the obvious hate she has for him any more… "

There was a considerable pause as Aizawa processed the information that Ukita had just given him, and in that time a noteworthy part of the white paper that covered the nicotine on Ukita's cigarette disappeared.

"Look at you Kazu, you're becoming a detective…"

Ukita smirked at his friend and stamped out his cigarette, immediately extracting a new one and bringing it to his lips, letting it hang there without lighting it.

"Fuck you. I'm as observant as the next guy… besides, it's better to observing something with a nice ass."

He lit up, and Aizawa chuckled and shook his head.

"Okay, so you like this girl. You don't think she's Kira. What are you gonna do?"

Ukita coughed a little and blew smoke from his lungs in irritation.

"What do you mean 'what am I gonna do?' Nothing! Not a damn thing. Besides the fact that she's got the temper of… well… a female version of you, she's just lost a fiancé. She's not interested. And her and L… well…"

He trailed off, and Aizawa frowned.

"You notice that too, huh?" He asked, remembering the way he'd watched as L had kept trained and possibly concerned eyes on the woman as she had stormed out of the living room after their game of chess and whispered exchange of heated words:

_Finally she stood from her chair, its legs creaking against the wood floor noisily, and walked off without saying a word, her shoulders taught and her spine stiff. Aizawa turned his head to watch her leave, his eyes questioning, before he looked at L, who was also watching her go with a thoughtful look on his face. _

"Yeah… I noticed," Ukita said, scowling a little. "Besides the fact that they talk and fight and have some kind of weird understanding about one another… he makes her laugh. He's the only one in months who's been able to make her smile and look happy and… and it's… _eerie_."

There was silence after that, each of them thinking of the many times that the task force members had stopped what they were doing to watch the odd way the famous detective known as L interacted with the Kira suspect know as Shoko Maki. They would eat sweets together, and many times the agents would come to the hotel and there would be fresh baked cakes and cookies that seemed to have been homemade. When Matsuda had questioned a batch of half eaten brownies that were sitting on the stove previously, Shoko had said offhandedly that she had made them the night before.

There was no reason to make anything sweet unless you were making it for L.

And they fought and bickered and teased each other in their own way, Shoko sharp and witty, and L calm and expressionless, both taking the others personality in complete stride. They were so peculiarly matched, so entirely opposite, and yet… they fit. In some strange way, through all their differences, they fit together and worked together seamlessly. L made Shoko seem peaceful (or at least calmer than anyone else could make her), and Shoko make L seem more… human.

"We have to assume," Ukita said, breaking the long silence, "that they're telling each other things that they aren't telling us. That they are working as a unit. She's not on the task force, she's on L's force. And anything she does is because L told her it was appropriate to do so."

Aizawa looked reflective. "I never thought of it that way," he said, brows knit. If that theory were true, then it meant that L _wanted _Shoko to act this way with Light Yagami.

"Yeah, well, fuckin' A."

Aizawa rolled his eyes, and watched as Ukita stamped out his cigarette and pulled out another one, his third in the time span of twenty minutes.

"We need to go back… You're smoking like your trying to kill yourself, slow down. This seems excessive, even for you…"

Ukita paused a moment, his lighter suspended as he considered his friends words.

"I guess your right," he finally said, taking the unlit stick out of his mouth and placing it carefully back into its pack. "I just… I don't know… I just have a feeling…"

Aizawa raised a brow. "What kind of feeling?" He asked, following the short agent as he headed back into the hotel.

"A bad one."

_**xxx**_

_Ten minutes later…_

The light from the TV was hurting Naomi's eyes, and she wanted desperately to blink. But pulling her gaze from the screen, even for the millisecond it would take to open and close her lids, was a millisecond to long.

_Kira…_

"_**Surely one person is not enough to prove my identity, so I will take another sacrifice. The target is another commentator on the same network who always opposes my actions." **_

"Channel 24!" L barked, and the channel was changed in time to see a rotund TV anchor keel back in his chair, obviously dead.

"This… this is disgusting," Naomi whispered, her voice shaking as she clutched the back of L's chair.

"…Kira is directly manipulating the mind of the public. It may be troublesome if we don't stop the broadcast soon…"

L looked to Ukita as he said it, and immediately Matsuda was running towards the phone, requesting in panic the number for Sakura TV.

"Damn it! I'll go stop them myself!" Ukita exclaimed as he ran out of the hotel room.

"I'll go with you!" Naomi called after him, caught up in sudden anger and adrenaline, but a hand wrapping tightly over her wrist stopped her from following.

"Stay here," L said firmly, looking over his shoulder at her with large stern eyes. His voice had not raised, but it was solid and unyielding, his eyes were wide and serious, and Naomi knew that there was no questioning it. The door slammed shut behind Ukita, and Naomi nodded slowly at L, who understood by her facial expression that she meant to listen to him. He released her wrist then and turned his attention back to the TV. Back to Kira.

They all listened then, unmoving and dumbstruck, as the muffled voice droned on about the perfect world it was creating.

"_**The world can be full of no one but people of good conscience."**_

"Smug totalitarian _fuck_." Naomi snarled against the quiet in the room, and both Matsuda and Aizawa jumped as they heard her say it, her voice breaking the silence like the crashing of glass against stone floor.

The stillness drew over them once more, however, as the speech continued on. Minutes dragged on, and Naomi gripped the back of L's chair harder with every new word that she heard. Even when she felt pieces of wood splinter under her nails she could not loosen her grip.

"_**Take a moment and imagine a world where the policemen work together with me to eliminate all evil." **_

On a separate TV, one that L had ordered Watari to bring into the room, the voice of a female newscaster cut through the distorted echo of Kira.

"_And we are now live at the front entrance of Sakura TV,"_ she said, her voice full of rushed urgency.

"_This just in, there is someone lying in front of Sakura TV stations front door."_

The image on the screen, of just who it was laying in a limp heap in front of the glass double doors, was unmistakable…

Naomi could barely get the words "Oh God," out of her mouth before Agent Aizawa was screaming like a lunatic.

"UKITA! DAMN YOU KIRA!"

In an instant Naomi's heart broke all over again, just as it had with Raye, before it covered itself with another thick layer of solid concrete and stone. And when Aizawa turned to leave, saying with venom that he was going to where Ukita was, Naomi was already matching him stride for stride, rage coursing through her veins like a tidal wave.

"_**Stop**_!"

Even through the ringing of anger in her ears, Naomi (and Aizawa) stopped in their tracks.

L had raised his voice.

He'd practically yelled.

"Ryuzaki, are you telling me to stare at the TV and do **nothing**!"

L was standing now, facing them with serious eyes, and Naomi had to work hard not to look away.

"I'm telling you that there is nothing else we can do. I'm telling you both that if you go now you'll die. I'm telling you that if you don't sit down and calm down, we may miss crucial clues that Kira could be leaking to us. I want to stop this broadcast as much as you do, but if Ukita-San was killed by Kira, then anyone else who goes there will suffer the same fate."

In the background Kira's pre-recorded voice could be heard, and it swept over them briefly at the silence that followed L's heated statement. He'd been calm and rational, but something in his voice held an edge to it, and Naomi was almost frightened by it, by the fact that not only was he _demanding_ that they stay at headquarters, but that he was angry.

"So our fake badges are useless after all? Did our names leak out somehow?!" Aizawa was yelling, and the anger in his voice made Naomi shake with her own. She wanted to get Ukita, she wanted to get his body off of that hard cement and back to headquarters. She wanted to rewind time, only minutes before to when Ukita had stormed out of the room. She wished he had stayed… she wished she had gone…

L was quiet a moment, and he looked over his shoulder to glance briefly at the television. Paramedics were retrieving Ukita's body, and Naomi saw a limp arm fall over the side of the stretcher.

_**Dead,**_

_**Dead,**_

_**Dead…**_

"Oh God," she moaned quietly, and she swayed and took a step back towards the door, her jaw clenching in determination as she felt the force of need push her get out of that room, away from the safety of it and to where Ukita was.

Where Kira was.

L confirmed the thought as he shared his opinion on the matter, his eyes trained on Naomi as he spoke, telling them that this seemed like a newly acquired power of Kira's. If there names had leaked, they would all be dead, but all Kira had needed was Ukita's face…

Naomi sucked in a deep breath. "He can kill who he _sees_… not just whose name and face he knows. All he's needs is to see them…" She said, and L nodded as she spoke.

"He's there right now," L said, his eyes never leaving hers, "if you go, and he sees you, you're dead."

Aizawa took a step closer to L, growling as he did so.

"If we know where Kira is now, shouldn't we go and **arrest** him?"

L's shoulders seemed to hunch even more than they normally did.

"Like I said, charging in there will get us killed. Please try to understand…" And at that, he turned his back on both Aizawa was Naomi and took his seat back into his chair, his long legs folding into his chest.

Aizawa's eye twitched, "Well I can't," he ground out, and Naomi's eyes widened as she watched him grab a hold of L's arm forcefully.

"Ukita died! Didn't you say you would risk your life to arrest Kira!?" Aizawa's voice steadily grew louder, and soon he was shouting at the top of his lungs. He shook L as he spoke, his fingers digging into his skin with enough pressure that there were sure to be bruises.

"Risking my life and throwing it away are two very different things," L said softly, and Naomi took a few tentative steps forward. His voice was so small… and the way his hands clutched at his legs… the way his body shook…

Aizawa released the detective quickly, stepping back as Naomi came to stand beside him, her brown eyes large and her expression a mix of fear and anger, sadness and confusion.

L breathed deeply before he spoke, looking more and more like a small scared child. "I feel the same way as you, but you must stay calm… It is too late for Ukita-San… but if Aizawa-San dies as well… If Maki-San dies…"

Naomi reached a slow shaking hand out to rest softly on L's shoulder.

"We're not going anywhere," she whispered, and she fought with every ounce of will power in her not to let tears spill from her eyes. Tears of anger for the injustice that was Kira. Tears for a murdered fiancé, a frightened detective, a hurt and pacing Aizawa, a fallen friend…

Ukita was dead… and there was nothing she could do…

"I'm not going anywhere."

And then a bus crashed through the Sakura stations front doors.

_**xxx**_

It was hours later, long after the chief had made if back to headquarters with Kira tapes in hand, that L walked the hallways of the hotel in mournful solitude.

He went barefoot, his hands shoved deeply into his pockets, and he kept his head down as he ran the nights events through his mind.

Two Kira's…

He hadn't shared his thoughts with the rest of the task force members, not yet- for he still needed to go over the tapes with a fine tooth comb, but he had run the idea briefly past Naomi. Briefly being the key word. He'd said to her in the moment they'd had alone together in the kitchen, _"I believe this is the work of a second Kira, Maki-San." _And she had stiffened and said, _"So do I…"_

Then task members had flooded into the room, and he'd been forced to keep his theories to himself, and soon after that Misora had excused herself and retreated to her room.

"_So do I…"_

Something inside of him stirred, and he recognized it as not only as being impressed, but as pride. He was proud that she had figured it out, that she had come to the same conclusion as himself. Her hate for Light Yagami did not blind her to the facts, and he wondered what had tipped her off. The senseless killings of the innocent? The varying powers that were used to murder people? The recklessness of advertising himself on television? All were clearly not Light's MO. They were not Kira's MO.

Which meant two Kira's.

For the first time in his life, L wanted to share his thoughts with someone else. He walked slowly down a flight of stairs and found that he wanted to bounce ideas off of her, to see what she thought of the situation. He wanted to know her opinion, and he wanted her to know his.

And he wanted to comfort her for the loss of Ukita.

So many people were dying, and blaming Kira only took L so far. He was going to have to shoulder some of the responsibility… For if he'd left them all out of it, none of them would be dead. Raye and the 12 agents, Yuri Ohno, Lind Taylor, the TV newscasters, and now Ukita. They were all his responsibility. And there was so much truth in that thought that it weighed heavily on L's conscious. He didn't like death in any form, most certainly not when the death was caused partially by him. And Ukita had been a good man, and a good detective.

But thank God, if there was such a being, that Naomi had not followed him to the Sakura TV station. The fear that he'd felt when she turned to leave not only once, but twice, had been insurmountable. If she had gone with Ukita, if she had died…

He'd have been out the door with Aizawa.

L's feet stopped, and he stared down the hall. Naomi's room was there, to the right, and he wondered if she would mind being bothered. He was thinking it over, trying to decide if talking to her was worth waking her up, when his cell phone rang in his pocket.

He extracted it, saw it was Watari, and answered it in the time span of a second, holding the device away from him as if it were contaminated.

"Yes?"

"Ryuzaki. I believe you should return to the hotel lobby. Mrs. Maki has just discovered the video tape of Raye Penber's death."

L's world froze for just a moment. Then he was moving quickly back down the hall and up a flight of stairs, saying into the mouth piece, "Yes, I understand Watari. Thank you."

He realized that in the short amount of time he'd been away from his floor of the hotel, Naomi must have left her own area and gone back upstairs. The trip back up the stairs and into the lobby only took a short time, but it was too late anyway. There on the television screen was Raye Penber, twitching in death by heart attack, and Naomi stood with her hand over her mouth and her eyes wide.

"What are you doing Misora-San?"

Naomi jumped, her eyes flying to him in alarm.

"I-I… I was going to watch the tapes from tonight… I wanted to study them more… I didn't know… I didn't know this was…"

Her voice hitched, and L crossed the room quickly, blocking the screen with his body and extracting the tape with force. He turned to her, his eyes concerned, and studied her face. She was pale, and her hand still covered her mouth. Her eyes were swimming, and she was looking past him, refusing to meet his gaze.

"…Naomi."

It got her attention, as it always did. Her eyes went to his, scared and upset, and then she was hurling herself into his arms, and L was holding her again, tightly, fiercely, as she sobbed into his chest.

"I'm sorry Naomi. I'm sorry for Raye and Ukita-San…"

Naomi shook her head against his chest, still crying like he had never seen or heard anyone do in his life. She was like a wounded animal, and he wondered if she had needed to do this for some time now.

"Th-this isn't… your… fault…" she said between each shuddering breath.

L only held her closer, tighter.

Then she said, "I'll kill Kira. I want… I want h-him…d-dead."

And L nodded, clutching her shoulders and pulling her back, catching her gaze.

"We're going to catch him, Naomi-San."

Naomi sniffed, pulling away from him and nodding, rubbing her eyes in an almost childlike fashion.

"I'm s-sorry," she stuttered, breathing deeply to get her emotions under control. But seeing Raye die like that, after just witnessing the death of Ukita, it had been too much. Seeing the man she loved collapse, clutching at his chest, his body going into spasms on the cold subway floor… it had been too much.

L shoved his hands into his pockets, taking a step back. "Do not be sorry, Naomi."

"I'm such an idiot," she said with venom, angry with herself now, for her moment of weakness.

L kept wide eyes on her. "Do not speak so poorly about yourself, especially when it's not true."

Naomi made a face. "It feels true. I feel stupid and used and… and, I don't know."

Her shoulders slumped a little, and L slouched even more. She was so unhappy.

And then he had an idea.

Reaching out he took her wrist, tugging her so that she would follow him.

"Come with me," he said, leading her across the room.

"What…?"

L didn't answer her, only led her into the kitchen and sat her at the table, going to the refrigerator and opening it.

"L… what are you doing?" Naomi asked, her voice even now shaky, and laced with confusion.

Still L didn't answer, and when he sat a plate of pre-made gourmet bakery desserts in front of her (purchased by Watari for L's eating enjoyment), Naomi looked up at him for explanation.

"… For you Naomi-San… to make you feel better," he realized too late that he not only felt, but sounded, very awkward.

There was a pause, Naomi only looking up at him with wide red rimmed eyes from crying. Then, suddenly her eyes were swimming again, and she'd laid her face into her palms and began bawling.

But when he saw her face, between her fingers, she was smiling through the tears, and there was something grateful about the way she cried.

And that, L felt, was much better than the lost look he'd seen on her face only minutes before. A look that he was going to make sure she never had again. Even if it meant killing Light Yagami, he refused to see that look on her face ever again, knowing the source and not being able to do anything about it.

And as Naomi calmed and they shared his sweets, L realized with a jolt that he hadn't minded giving up his very delicious plate of desserts to make her feel better. That sharing them with her made them taste better anyway.

Somehow that was even more frightening to the detective than Kira. He wondered what was happening to him, what was going on in his heart and mind that had him feeling this way, had him acting this way…

That had him wanting to kill Light Yagami, for ever making her cry…

_**xxx**_

_**Authors Note**_: Again, I hope none of you think this was too out of character. L is a hard man to write out. He's got too many damn layers. :P

I changed some parts in the scene where L and the task force are watching Kira hold the TV station hostage. He actually _stands up_ when Naomi and Aizawa go to leave. I felt that was important, to show how serious he was about her not going. :)

This Light POV at the beginning of the chapter was originally in the last chapter; but I moved it and added it here. I figured Chapter Six was an L and Naomi moment, and I didn't want to spoil it with Light. From now on though, you'll actually be hearing a lot more from Kira. :(

Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed. I appreciate your feedback and all the kind words. You guys are great. Please review, and constructive criticism is wonderful, but no flames!

Thanks again!!


	8. Chapter 8, Revelations

_**Author's Note:**_ Ha-ha. Watch me use the Honorific "Kun" in a sentenced without fucking it up (bangs head on desk).

_**Disclaimer:**_ I don't own Death Note. Not even a little. :(

_**Chapter Eight: Revelations**_

_**xxx**_

Anger is a powerful emotion, and can at times make a person act in ways that he or she normally wouldn't.

Naomi shook with anger. The rage, boiling red, coursed through her veins and made her whole body shake and tremor. Her temper flared at every thought of the last few hours, and she knew that if she didn't calm down she would start breaking things, or at least, more thing than she had already broken.

_L._

The moment that she saw L she was going to wring his neck. He and Light were the reasons for all of this pent up anger, and directing her fury at the two sources that had caused it sounded like the most appealing though she'd had in days, weeks even. Reflecting on it made her all the more convinced that L's long, thin neck would look very, _very_ fetching between her squeezing hands…

_**xxx**__(earlier…)_

Her inferno of rage had begun just hours ago, when L had held the meeting with the task force, telling them of his theories on the Second Kira. In this Naomi was not surprised, for they had stayed up rather late the night before going over the whole thing. But then L mentioned bringing Light onto the task force, and Naomi had felt her cool demeanor slip. This was something they _hadn't_ discussed last night. It wasn't that she had not been expecting to have Light join the task force eventually; his presence was inevitable if they were to ultimately gather enough evidence to prove him as Kira. But, for whatever reason, she hadn't thought it would be so soon. And after seeing the video of Raye's death, she wasn't sure if she would be able to handle herself around Light in a way that reflected suspicion, but not full out hate and loathing. At the moment, the very thought of Light Yagami's calculating eyes sent a shock of rage up her spine.

L explained that if Light were indeed Kira, he would deny the possibility of a Second Kira, and he would refuse to help them with the investigation. In this new Kira's message, he or she had requested that L make a television appearance. L would ask Light to make a video pretending to be the real Kira, counteracting Second Kira's request. If Light aided the task force, he would be cleared of suspicion. If Light refused to help, L would die, just as Kira would want him to.

Naomi frowned deeply, knowing that L was stringing the task force along with bold faced lies that came from his lips with predictable ease. The point of this was obviously to catch the original Kira, Light, by getting him in close contact with the rest of the task force.

Then the chief was calling his son and telling him to come to the hotel they were located at, and Naomi felt her eye twitching. The time for confronting Light was closer at hand, as he'd be at the hotel in less than a half an hour, and Naomi knew only one way to react to him.

It was only two minutes later, when she'd counted to one hundred and twenty and her hands were still shaking, that L intervened. Just before Light arrived the wide eyed detective had pulled her to the side, distancing the two of them far enough between the other task force members so that no one would hear them. "Your anger is evident with this situation, Maki-San," he'd said at low volume, and Naomi, even through her growing irritation, could detect the concern laced in his voice.

"I just… I wasn't prepared to see him so soon…" She said as she bit her lip in both rage and anxiety. Then a strong flare of anger suddenly coursed through her and she rounded on him. "You didn't tell me about any of this," she alleged through clenched teeth, her nostrils flaring at the thought of the outwardly innocent boy that had caused the death of-no- had _murdered_ her fiancé.

L bit his thumb hard as he looked down at her in thought. Then he said simply, in a childlike voice, "I knew you would not understand the need to bring him on the task force so soon."

Naomi glared up and him, her hands clenching into fists at her sides, "I wouldn't _understand_? L, maybe if I'd had time to prepare myself for seeing him… you didn't even tell me what was going on!" Her voice was heated but subdued, aware that the task force was just at the other end of the large room. It was not in her nature to cause a scene, and she certainly didn't want to alert any of the men to hers and L's plan to enrage Light into a confession. However, the more she stood there and imagined his manipulative face looming in front of her, the more she herself became enraged.

"Maki-San, you are letting Light-Kun get the best of you, and he isn't even here to witness it… There is a reason for my decision to keep this from you. Look how you are reacting to the thought of him Shoko…We cannot wait any longer for Light to join the task force, now that there is a Second Kira. I will explain it all to you later if you let me, but you must compose yourself," he paused for a moment then, thinking, adding a dramatic effect that she was sure was all planned out on his part.

"Maki-San," he began, pausing with unnaturally large eyes glued to her own, his face as serious as ever. "Perhaps now is not the time for you to be interacting with Light Yagami… perhaps after you've calmed?"

The look that Naomi had directed at L in that moment would have made any sane man shirk in chastised embarrassment. L however, only looked at her void of expression, waiting for an answer.

It was that void expression that did it for her. Naomi felt something inside of her snapping, and she couldn't help it as she snarled and grabbed the collar of his shirt, yanking him to her in a rashness that would later shock her. "This kid killed my fiancé, I _dare_ you to keep me away from him."

Her teeth were bared like a wild animal, and her voice was pure venom. And although something in the far corner of her mind told her that she was acting like a lunatic, her actions couldn't be helped. She was on edge, on the tip of a precarious ledge that was as high and steep as Mt. Everest. Lack of sleep, a constant emotional rollercoaster, depression and anger, frustration and confusion, sadness and fear; they all contributed to her now erratic behavior.

L seemed to realize this as he sighed and let his hands drop to his sides. Naomi watched his wide eyes through thin slits, and thought that he looked… regretful. He leaned forward and wrapped a long fingered hand around her wrist, the one that was entangled in his shirt, detaching it with little effort.

"Naomi," L murmured softly in her ear, his warm body close to hers and his fingers pulling her arm away from him in a motion that was firm and gentle all at once. Naomi froze as something shot through her that for the life of her she could not identify. It was a feeling that made her feet paralyzed and her thoughts feel like they came through a thick and impenetrable fog. Between the blinding anger that mixed with this new reaction that was causing a torrent though her common sense, Naomi couldn't grasp anything that was happening.

Something was making a snapping noise; a noise that Naomi finally registered was a sound she had heard many times before. It was a sound from her past, a sound from her days as an FBI agent. But she realized too late that it was the clicking of handcuffs, for L had already brought her other writs down and behind her back, placing the cold metal against her skin before she could respond to it.

The detective stayed close to her for a moment, letting the shock of what he had done sink in. Then he murmured in her ear, much softer than a whisper, "Do you trust me, Naomi-San?"

Naomi felt nothing, but in her haze a tiny voice trilled at her that, yes, she did trust him. She trusted him with her life.

So she nodded.

"Then please forgive me," L said, pulling away, holding her firmly by her elbow.

Naomi looked at him, eyes wide, thoughts finally catching up to her as she understood, too late, what he was planning on.

"Aizawa, Mogi," L called across the room, getting the attention of the two agents. "Please escort Maki-San to her room and lock her there. I will retrieve her once Light-Kun has gone."

They seemed unsurprised with the situation, as though they had been expecting this to happen. Naomi realized with a jolt then that L had probably divulged to them that this was what he was planning on doing, and that they were to detain her when he asked it of them, without her any the wiser.

L looked down at her, shoulders slouched and an expression that was full of unhappiness. "I will explain," he told her resolutely, and it sounded very much like an apology and a promise wrapped into one.

Naomi wanted to scream. She wanted to lash out, to kick and stomp and bite and curse. But instead she only nodded, clenched her teeth, stuck out her jaw, and walked between the two agents as they attended her to her room. She cast one dark glace over her shoulder at the detective as she exited the lobby, and L had the decency to look forlornly down at the carpet, his hands going deep into his jean pockets.

_**xxx**_

That was hours ago, and Naomi paced with her hands still cuffed behind her back, kicking at her dresser whenever the anger built so passionately in her that it was painful not to let it out in some form. As a result, the lowest dresser drawer was off its track, and the brass handle was lying halfway across the room. Naomi worked once more at the cuffs, knowing it was futile, and wishing that either Aizawa or Mogi would have had the courtesy to undo the metal contraptions before they left. Her wrists burned as she tried to wedge them through the small space the handcuffs allowed. She wondered vaguely if there would be chafes on her wrists from her struggling, and then shrugged it off, uncaring.

There was movement outside of her door, and Naomi stopped in her tracks and watched as her door handle turned and opened, slowly revealing a tired looking L. He glanced at her, meeting her eyes only briefly, before he shut and locked the door behind him, taking only a few steps into the room and keeping distance between himself and the silent Misora.

At some length Naomi finally said, "I could kill you right now. You know that, right?"

He voice was soft but deadly, and L looked at her with the same unwavering expression.

"…You are more than welcome to try," he said eventually. Then he pulled out a set of small silver keys from his pocket, "Would you like me to uncuff you first?"

Naomi's eye twitched at the casualness of his voice, and she ignored the keys. "Where is Light?"

L sighed and stepped forward, walking behind her and unlocking the handcuffs, holding them with the tips of his fingers once they were removed. He then proceeded to throw them in her tiny wicker trash can, along with the keys, and stood facing her again as she glared at him and rubbed her wrists.

"You shouldn't have struggled so much; you should have known I was coming back for you," he said, indicating the red marks around her wrists from the handcuffs. Naomi saw something pass over his face as he said it, and she thought it might be sadness… or guilt.

"Where is Light?" Naomi repeated, ignoring L's statement entirely.

L's shoulders slumped and his hands returned to his pockets. "He is, at the moment, writing the rebuttal to Second Kira… we will release a tape in response to this new Kira… hopefully I can avoid revealing myself…" There was a pause before he continued, sadly, "Naomi-San… this was necessary, I assure you."

Naomi's cheeks flushed red with instant anger. "_Necessary_? L you told me to trust you, and I do, but you handcuffed me and locked me in my room like a petulant child! Did you think I was going to hurt Light? Is that why you kept me in here, because you were worried for Kira's _safety_?" Her voice had grown slightly hysterical, and again her hands were in fists by her sides.

"It was not for Light," L said quietly, eyes looking up at the ceiling. "…It was for you."

"…"

When the pause became to long L diverted his attention from the ceiling and looked at Naomi. She was looking at him, her eyes narrowed and her arms crossed. "Explain," she said scathingly.

L looked at Naomi blankly for a moment before walking past her and going to the table in the corner of her room, sitting in the hard backed chair and bringing his knees to his chest, as always. He waited for Naomi to join him, and after a slight moments hesitation she did, sitting across from him and raising her eyebrow with a look that clearly said, _'Tell me now.' _

"… It was for your protection. Beside the fact that if you were to let your anger consume you, as I'm Eighty Nine Percent sure you would have, I believe that it would have been Lights way out of helping us. If anyone had been hostile with him he would not be making that tape right now, using the excuse that we were trying to frame him as Kira, not enlist in his aid. If he would have felt threatened in any way he would not have agreed to help us try and catch the Second Kira… But the reason I did not want you here when Light arrived…"

L paused without warning, biting his thumb harshly. He looked at that moment as unsure as Naomi had ever seen him, and it was so subtle that she thought she may have imagined it. Finally he continued, his voice slightly muffled as he spoke around the thumb between his teeth.

"There was a chance that, for whatever reason, Light really _was_ the Kira we observed massacring people on television. We were taking a risk letting him see us today," he stopped talking for a moment, lips slightly parted, studying her, watching her. "… He still does not know your name, Naomi-San… I wanted to keep it that way until I was sure there was no harm in your confronting him. … I did not want you in his presence until I was sure that he cannot kill by only needing a face. "

"…"

The silence that followed was long and pregnated. Naomi said nothing, and her face would have been almost impossible for L to read had it not been for the brief frown and crease in her brow that told him she was not only upset, but confused. At last she said, in as calm a voice she could muster, "… Why do you put me in situations like this? _Why_ do you do things that are completely unreasonable, like handcuffing me, and have an explanation after the fact that makes complete sense? Why couldn't you just _tell_ me?"

L looked dubious. "If I had come to you with my theory," he said, looking her dead in the eye, "would you have stayed willingly out of harms way?"

Naomi looked away from his gaze, but it wasn't in defeat or acknowledgement that he was right, it was in thought. _Would_ she have listened? If she were completely honest with herself, what would the answer to that question be?

She thought about that carefully. At their first interaction, over two years ago during the BB Murder Cases, Naomi had been reluctant on occasion, but she had listened to L without question. She had put an extreme amount of faith in him at that time, no matter how unenthusiastic. And, she thought, that she had followed through wonderfully. Then later, when she had met Light Yagami, unknowing that he was Kira (and so sure that he was now), she had listened to his caution about using an alias, in turn saving her own life. When she had let her depression and hate consume her after joining the task force, she had headed his advice and had started to take better care of herself. Albeit, she had been angry with him for a short time, she'd still seen the value and sense in his words. When she had seen him in front of the hospital after Chief Yagami's collapse, she had not called him L, but Ryuzaki, as she'd promised she would when they were in public.

But there was more, a list longer that just this, in what seemed like an unending timeline of loyalty. She'd not gone to Sakura TV station on the night the Second Kira began his reign of televised tyranny, but had stayed when he'd forbidden it. The fear in him had been so great then, when she'd seen the look in his face as he'd told her 'no,' and she had listened because disregarding his words at that moment would have been physically impossible for her. Not that she didn't have a backbone, not that she couldn't tell him no on occasion, but that she trusted him enough to know that what he was telling her to do was to save her life, to keep her out of harms way.

Minutes ticked by before she finally looked up and answered simply, "Yes."

L stared at her, his face impassive, but it was clear that he was waiting for a better explanation.

"When," Naomi continued in a composed voice, "have you ever given me an order that I have not followed?"

Another, longer, pause followed the question. The corners of L's lips twitched, and he may have been thinking of the same 'list of loyalties' as Naomi had. Then the ghost of a smile vanished, and he said, "Naomi… I have said this before, I believe. I trust you with my life. I trust you with anything that I can think of, even my own name, but I do not trust you with yourself."

The implications of this were lost as Naomi's mind raced over what he meant by _his own name_. He was shaking his head at her.

"_Think_ Naomi-San. If I had told you today that I wanted you out of sight while Light Yagami was present, at least until we determined whether or not he really was the Kira on Sakura TV… _then_ would you have listened?"

His voice was calm and even, but there was something behind it, something that implied that he was trying to get her to see a double meaning.

'_I trust you with my life… but I do not trust you with yourself.'_

And then it hit her all at once. His life. _His life _had been in danger today. The only way for them to truly know if Light was Second Kira, killing any with only a face, was if L had suddenly dropped dead.

"You… you could have been killed today," Naomi said after a moment, her voice soft and small. "You wanted him to see you. If you had died… it meant that he was Kira…"

L's eyes rolled up to the ceiling and back down in an almost lazy manner. He stuck out his chin and tapped it a few times, bringing his knees even closer to his chest as he did so. "And after you realized this," he said in monotone, "Then, would you have stayed where you were, while I was in danger?"

_**No**_.

She knew the answer in a heartbeat. No, no, no, no, no. _Never_. She would _never_ have left his side. She would have never let herself be locked up into a small and contained room, hiding away to keep her own skin out of danger. She would have fought agents Aizawa and Mogi tooth and nail before they could have detained her. She would have persuaded L to let her stay. She would have _killed_ Light Yagami in a moment's notice, before his eyes even lingered to the detectives face.

And L had known this. He had made sure to anger her to the point of blind rage to keep her from seeing what he was really doing; to keep her from realized that he was risking his own life.

The passion it caused to build up in her actually made her heart feel as though it were in pain, and she clutched at her chest, breathing deeply to try and slow its pounding.

"You," she croaked out, and she was in immediate displeasure when she realized that her eyes were swimming with those ridiculous tears. "You will condone me for wanting to protect you because I'm risking my own life, but you do the same without a question of hypocrisy?"

"Then I am a hypocrite," he replied simply, biting his thumb once more.

Naomi took a deep shuddering breath, clenching her jaw and forcing the tears back, refusing to let them fall. It wasn't as though L hadn't noticed she was so close to crying though. He'd seen it right away, and while he knew that the tears were not out of any real sadness, but because of such zealous anger, his resolve grew stronger. Whatever this emotion that she felt for him, though he knew not what it was, it was too strong. Killing herself for him was much too simple a task in her mind. He refused to witness her dead at his feet, his breath still coming because she had made a sacrifice. He was _not_ that important.

But she was. A bullet, a God, a boy, Kira; he would step in front of any to protect her. And if they both felt the same way, would both die to keep the other living on, what did that mean?

L ineffectively pushed the though away, though it plagued him constantly, relentlessly. Why did she feel so strongly for him? Why did she have no uncertainties about laying her life on the line for his own? And why did he feel the same way in reverse? Why did he want to keep her safe to the point of distraction? Why was he thinking more of her and less of the task at hand? Thoughts of her were with him always, and Kira was taking a backseat to his main focus of attention. Why was she having this effect on him? What was this clutching at his heart every time that he thought of her? What was this shortness of breath at the mere consideration of her? Was this… love?

He blanched at this thought. His heart stopped for one impossibly unnoticeable moment. He'd been searching for an answer to the question for so long, trying to figure out what these feelings meant, and finally the answer was in front of him. Love. It was ridiculous. It was impossible. He was _**L**_- the world renowned detective- a recluse and a loner, this was not something that happened to _him_. It was completely irresponsible and unreasonable and _entirely_ out of character, and more than likely destined for tragedy… but there it was. He was in love with Naomi Misora.

And she felt the same, of that he was certain. She was still in mourning over her fiancé, still confused about her own feeling towards him, but eventually she would realize that she was in love with him. And, he realized with a jolt, he would be waiting for her until she did. He had already waited this long, his whole life going by without a thought of the possibility of loving another human being, of trusting someone enough to love them, of being the kind of person who could be loved in return. But he'd been waiting for her; he just hadn't known what he was waiting for.

Naomi was looking at him strangely, all trace of tears (and anger) gone now.

"Why are you looking at me that way?" she asked, her head tilted to the side and her eyes narrowed.

_Because I have just realized that I am in love you, you silly girl._

"I'm wondering how long you will be angry with me. I'm hoping that you won't refuse to make me the cookies you promised tonight."

Naomi's eyes rolled, but they brightened, and that was a good sign; it meant she would forgive him.

"I don't think you deserve cookies… I don't think you deserve anything but… lima beans… and broccoli."

L made a face at her, his nose wrinkling in disgust. "That, Naomi, is a punishment too harsh."

Naomi chuckled and shook her head, a tremor running down her spine at his relaxed use of her first name. How was it possible to feel so comfortable, and yet so _very_ uncomfortable at his lack of caring when forgoing the honorific of her name? In America no one had addressed her as Naomi-San, or as Misora-San, and she had gotten used to that. But when L forwent the use of Japanese convention, it was different, and it caused pleasure and weariness to race through her veins every time he let her name slip past his lips when they were in private conversation. "I'll make your stupid cookies. I'm not doing it from scratch though. You get cookies right out of the box tonight."

L looked dejected, "If you think that's what I deserve," he said, scratching a chip on her wooden table, avoiding her eyes.

Naomi laughed again, this time with more genuine feeling. "You are pathetic. You won't even be able to tell! It's exactly the same."

L sighed and didn't reply, his eyes focused on the table, his nails making the scratch on it deeper.

Naomi pressed her lips together. "I won't give in to your pouting. You handcuffed me locked me in my bedroom!"

L's lips twitched and he looked up at her. She was grinning at him, and for one inexplicable moment he forgot what he was going to say.

"Would you like to see Light now, Naomi?"

The grin was gone. He was instantly sorry he'd asked; of course she would stop smiling when he'd posed such a question. But still, the question needed to be asked, and he was not one to avoid such a pressing detail. And besides, he was eager to escape, to distance himself so that he could think longer on his new revelations.

Naomi's breath was deep and steadying, but her voice was uncertain. "…I… I do but… Just keep me away from him… for now. Wait until the tape he's made had aired, that way he can't back out. He'll have to help us once he's made this first step, no matter what I say or do to him. He'll look suspicious if he refuses to help us just because I'm hostile towards him, especially if he's already aided us in the capture of Second Kira. He'll look… childish if he backs down. And he'll look guilty. I'll wait to meet him at least for another day."

L's lips twitched, and then the twitching stopped and he was actually smiling at her. The effect it had on Naomi was unsettling. She had seen him smile at her like that only once before, on the day she'd first met him as the detective _**L**_, as he'd sat across from her at a previous hotels kitchen counter and offered her employment on the task force. It was the same smile; slightly forced because it was so unnatural, and it looked out of place there on his lips- usually they were flat or down turned. But it was also very sweet, and somehow very innocent. There was pride in it, aimed at her for her assessment of Light's reaction to her hostility's. The pride extended to the fact that even though she wanted to meet Light once more, wanted to seek some verbal outlet for her misery, she was able to wait just a bit longer for the right moment.

And there was something else, too. Something that Naomi refused to read in his smile, in his eyes. Something that made her subconscious shudder.

"We'll wait then," was all L said in return, his smile fading after a moment. He stood and stretched, standing on the tips of his bare toes. Then he was slouching, his hands going to his pockets, his feet shuffling along the floor as he made his way to the door.

"I'll be back once he's gone… so you can make me my cookies," he told her, looking over his shoulder with wide, bored eyes.

Naomi nodded, saying nothing. And when the door was closed she exhaled a breath she hadn't know she'd been holding. And she sat in her chair, and she thought of nothing but L's ridiculous smile, and her mind rejected to consider what it meant. And after a moment all she did was breath, and she refused to think at all, letting her mind go blank of all thoughts.

And in the hall L stared at her closed door with wide eyes, his toes flexing into the cream colored carpet, and his hands fisted so tightly into his pockets that they were numb.

And he didn't move from that spot for a long time.

_**xxx **_

_**Authors Note:**_ Yeah… this took a long, LONG, _**LONG**_ time to get posted. I don't think I can really apologize enough. All I can say is that between being a full time parent, having a full time job, and leading a life that requires me to be somewhat social, I'm lucky I can still write fan fiction. I am sorry though, and I won't lie and say that I couldn't have made time. You have no idea how many books people have piled me down with! I think that my reading has definitely cut into my writing, so I'm putting it all to the side for now. I finished most of it though. All I have left to read is _Wicked_, and then I'll wait a few months before I start _The Dark Towers series_. Whew!

This chapter was exceptionally hard to write… Thank God I have all the Manga downloaded, because otherwise I'd be lost (I actually own the subtitled anime, although I prefer the American voice over version, and it's been of help as well). I have to say that the most useful piece of literature I have for this fan fic has to be _Death Note 13, How to Read_ (I literally keep it beside me for its timeline while I type this)_._ If you don't own DN13, or _Another_ _Note_, I recommend them both for your personal library. :)

To answer the question I was asked about where to find the book Another Note… I have no idea where to find it online. :( I bought it at Barnes and Nobel in the Manga section. … I'm not very good at navigating for free things on the net (lol, I still buy CD's because I can't figure out limewire). I wouldn't know the first place to look. :(:(:(:(

Review! Tell me how angry you are that I abandoned this for so long! Berate me! Scold me for my ADD!! Tell me you're disappointed in my lack of dedication!! …But review. And if you don't review, that's ok; I still love and appreciate you. :)


	9. Chapter Nine, The Meeting

_**Chapter Nine: The Meeting **_

_**xxx**_

"Here, you'll need this."

Naomi looked down at the gun L was handing to her. It was a standard nine millimeter, black with silver plating on the handle, much like the one Naomi had possessed when she'd been a member of the FBI.

"This is illegal in Japan," Naomi said, taking the gun and trying not to look repulsed. She still carried some aversion to firearms. L shrugged. "I'd feel better if you had this on you at all times when in Kira's presence," he told her. Naomi nodded. Still, it was hard for her not to feel awkward with the firearm in her grip. It had been years now since she'd been in possession of a gun, and she had never had to use one on anything but a paper target at a firing range.

But in this instance, in the event that she may have to use the weapon to stop Kira- to stop Light and the mystery Second Kira,- she could make an exception. Light had killed her fiancé (there was no doubt in her mind), and he was set on killing herself and on killing L. Earlier, during a long discussion with L concerning strategy, she and the detective had decided that Kira was causing a mass genocide. That _Light_ was causing a mass genocide. So she _would_ be able to use this gun, this weapon of death. Of that there was no doubt in her mind. She would use it to save herself, to save L, and to save anyone else that may fall victim if Light continued on his path of eradication.

L had, of course, made her swear not to shoot Light on sight. She'd acquiesced, though grudgingly.

"Do you have a holster?" Naomi asked.

L reached into the duffel bag he'd brought with him and extracted a black webbed holster. It was nylon, sturdy, and went around the waist. It also came with various pouches that already possessed two sets of hand cuffs and a very potent defense spray.

"Thanks," Naomi told L as she took the holster from the tips of his fingers. She set the gun on her nightstand while she belted on her holster over her blue jeans, then she placed the gun in its respective position on her right hip. It felt disturbingly appropriate there, like it was always meant to be at hand. She pulled the gun from the holster and made sure the safety was on. She sighted at her lamp, the picture on her wall, the peep hole on her door at the other end of the room. She moved around the space, getting the feel of the guns weight. Finally she reached L, who looked at her blankly, before she lowered the gun and replaced it in the holster.

"Thinking of shooting me for locking you in here yesterday?" he asked blandly.

She gave him a sarcastic smile. "Shooting you would be much too quick."

There was a light in her eyes, a teasing that made L's lips twitch. The joke was there in Naomi's voice, but death loomed too closely to both of them that she suddenly felt uncomfortable. Smile waning, Naomi sighted her black high top boots in the corner of the room and went to them, sitting in a nearby chair and pulling them on.

L watched her thoughtfully. Black, he noted, seemed to be the theme of the day. Black boots, a thick black belt, a black cotton top covered by a worn black leather jacket. The only bit of color that stood out on her was the bright blue of her jeans. He wondered if this was her version of intimidating, or if perhaps she'd dressed so solemnly without meaning to do so.

"You look… grim, Naomi-San. Perhaps a bit of color in your outfit may make you less… hostile."

Naomi raised perfectly arched brows. "Perhaps hostile was the effect I was going for?"

L smiled at her, not hugely as he'd been known to, but a small upward motion of his lips. Naomi felt the shock of it had dulled, and this perhaps shocked her even more. He was smiling at her, often enough now that it no longer looked as though the action was forced or an oddity on his face. It just seemed… right. For him to smile at her was anticipated, welcomed, and no longer astounding - that in itself was a shock.

"… You look as though you have just thought of something important- Naomi."

That shock- the use of her name with no honorific, had still not left her. It made Naomi's toes curl, her body tighten.

"Truth between us?" she questioned but simply continued without a reply, "You smile at me, and I don't think it's odd, anymore."

The way she said it made heat rush to her cheeks. Why had she worded it that way? "What I mean is," she struggled to find her footing in this lost path of dialogue, "that when you smile at me, I… enjoy it?" Her cheeks burned redder, and heat crept up her neck. L's eyes had become very wide during her maladroit explanation and wider still when he noticed her blushing.

"You've now added color to your wardrobe, Naomi," he said awkwardly, motioning at the fierce blush on her cheeks. Pointing it out, however, seemed to make it worse.

"Also that," Naomi began, avoiding his eyes and staring resolutely at the floor, "When you say my name like that. It's unnerving."

L took a step away from her. "I will stop, Misora-San."

"No!" Her protest was quick and her eyes round with worry. "I didn't mean you insult me, you honor me. I just mean…. I just mean…" she trailed, because she did not know what she meant. It had taken Raye months upon long months to forego the honorific of her name- and they'd been in America where such things were considered a peculiarity. Here, where she was home, this man called her Naomi, and the feel of it was agreeable.

"I just mean… that these changes in you… this friendship… I am honored by it." It was a part truth, so it did not sting like a lie. But the pleasure it caused for her name to be uttered form his lips was left unsaid. She did not want him to know, she did not even want to acknowledge it herself. The image of Raye just kept returning to her- in the forefront of her mind as a constant reminder of what was. His death, it plagued her with regret of a life that had died with him, a life she was supposed to be living now.

L frowned at her use of the word friendship, but his lips became neutral when he saw that her blush still remained. She was… _embarrassed_. It caused an unexpected thrill to course through him, that she could be so unraveled by her admission that she enjoyed his ease around her. And that she blushed gave her away. It meant more than friendship, of that he was decidedly sure. But still she fought it, and still he did not push the subject. She was in mourning, and would be for some time. L thought that the waiting would bother him more than it did, but he currently felt that the friendship was worth more than pushing Naomi into something that she would not be ready for. He wasn't even sure he was ready for whatever it was they were heading towards. His experience at this sort of thing was… limited.

L cleared his throat and motioned towards the door. There was no time to ponder this, no time to analyze it further. Naomi was not ready, and L did not think that he was either. As much as he enjoyed her and the strange and foreign thoughts that seemed to plague him recently, there was nothing for it. She was still in love with Raye, refusing to let go- and understandably so. For now, it was time to see Light. It was time for Naomi to prove herself as the capable person he knew her to be.

xxx

Light watched the figure of Shoko Maki follow L around the small hotel living space as though she were his shadow. She had made no move to acknowledge him- even when their eyes had met and Light had nodded and formally greeted her. She had just stared at him, her cold eyes boring in to his until he'd been forced to look away. Her lips were set in a perpetual frown, her lips stiff and frowning and her jaw twitching as she clenched her teeth every time he spoke. When L had read the letter he'd produced as the "real" Kira and pointed out that he'd still demanded for L's death, she'd actually placed a light hand on the holster of her gun. And then she'd closed her eyes, and Light could swear that she'd counted to ten in an effort to calm herself.

It was impossible not to be distracted by her mere presence. Every movement he made that was meant to be casual, every word he spoke that was supposed to carry the air of innocence, was marred by the glowering presence of Shoko Maki, watching him with cold black eyes.

Ryuk did much hyuking and hawing over her presence, and it took the use of Light's entire finesse not to outwardly show sign of the shock that had run through him with the Shinigami had said, "That woman in black will be your death, Light."

Instead, feeling as though this was another of L's traps, Light forced himself to look at her and say, as pleasantly and inoffensively as he could, "Hello again, Mrs. Maki. … I can't help but think that perhaps you are not happy with my presence."

The response he'd gotten had been a deep scowl. "How very odd that you might think that," she had said, and her voice had been cold and full of dark sarcasm.

Befriending her was going to be somewhat a trial, he realized. A minor roadblock maybe, it was clear that she thought of him as Kira, that his guilt was already decided in her mind. That the only reason he didn't have a bullet between his eyes was because L had demanded a semblance of good behavior from her. That L, perhaps, even wanted her to behave this way. That he hoped her hostility would cause him to slip in some way and revel himself as the true Kira.

This made Light all but smirk._ 'No way, L,' _he thought._ 'That's not going to happen. This woman is going to be your downfall. Your Trojan Horse is going to backfire. I'll use her to my advantage- you'll see.'_

And then his message as the "fake" Kira had aired, and he'd been allowed to return home with his father, L thanking him quietly for his help in the matter, and Shoko Maki glowering just behind him, her hand once again resting on the holster of her firearm. He'd smiled at her before he'd left, projecting towards her a friendly air that had made her grip her weapon even tighter.

The car ride home had been a quit sort of undertaking, his father saying very little other than to tell him that he had done well. When he'd finally collapsed onto his desk chair he glared severely at Ryuk.

"I suppose you can't help all your laughing, can you?"

Ryuk grinned wide and toothy. "This is fun, Light. And so _interesting_… You humans are so complex sometimes. Really, I'm surprised she didn't just shoot you. It's obvious she hates you."

Light rolled his eyes at the Shinigami. "She can't kill me," he explained, "because L- Ryuzaki- told her not to. He either wants to try and catch me the right way, or he still isn't completely convinced that I'm Kira."

Light swiveled in his chair, leaning back and staring at the ceiling as he contemplated the night's events.

"This… is going to be easier than I thought," he said finally.

"… Oh?" Ryuk asked, his wings twitching.

"Hmmm… yes. Shoko Maki will trust me. And then, she will give me everything I need. Though, if this second Kira isn't a complete moron he'll still demand L's death and I won't have to worry about it."

He smiled and straightened, pulling out the death note and flipping on his television, preparing to write a new assembly of names judged guilty by Kira.

"You'll see, Ryuk. This isn't going to be nearly as interesting as you might think."

The Shinigami smirked. "We'll see, Light. … We'll see.

**_xxx_**

It was late at night, the raspberry filled Manju desserts all but a memory between Naomi and L, the latter who was still licking his fingers clean of the sweet filling.

"Good?" Naomi asked, watching him in faint amusement.

L nodded and hugged his knees. "You are getting better at preparing Japanese deserts, Naomi-San."

She stood and took the plate to the sink, a small smile playing on her lips. "I think it's something I should probably be learning. It doesn't seem as though I'll be back in America any time soon."

L watched her as she rinsed the plate.

"Perhaps… tonight went very well. It was hard to see but… I feel as though Light was very determined to get to know you. This seems to be going according to plan."

Naomi returned to the table, her brows knit with concern. "I'm still not sure about all this, L. I don't know how convincing I'll be at pretending to… _like_ _Light_," Naomi said this in disgust, as if liking Light was the most abhorrent idea to ever cross anyone's mind. In reality, it truly was to her. She continued, "The hate is easy because it's real… but…"

She left the rest hanging there, not needing to elaborate. When the time came to try and fool Light, Naomi was certain she would not be able to follow through.

L immediately understood what she was trying to say. "Focus for now on making his life harder while he is with us. Moving slow is key. It has to seem like a natural progression… otherwise he may suspect you are being false. …When it comes time to compel him into thinking you trust him… You'll know what to do, Naomi." He said all of this around the tip of his thumb that he bit down on harshly. Naomi had sucked in a little breath at his use of her name, and L would be lying to himself if he did not admit that he'd used it to that end. It was truly juvenile, but he _liked_ the reaction it elicited from her.

"How long do you think before the second Kira responds?" She asked.

L gave a small sigh. "Not long. … This Second Kira… He seems more impulsive. Catching him will be easier, I believe, than catching Light. … He wants to hear from the real Kira. Idolizes him, perhaps. … Things will fall as they should."

Naomi looked at him, her eyes full of worry. "And if he demands your death still? Then what?"

L tramped down the feeling of elation stemmed from her concern for his well-being. "We'll figure something out, Naomi."

The use of her name, while still causing her cheeks to tint the faintest hue of pink, did not deter her from the current line of questioning as he'd hoped.

"This solution doesn't involve you sacrificing yourself, right? Because that would prove nothing."

L studied the heat in her eyes as she spoke, anger and suspicion sparking in them at the musing of his sacrificing himself.

"I will not be doing that, Naomi-San. … As you said, it would prove nothing- nor would it help the situation. ... I do not think that this Kira is smart enough to realize Light would still want me dead. I think the main focus was to get his attention."

Naomi looked unsettled. "… Get his attention for what?"

There was a long stretching silence between them before L answered.

"I do not know, Naomi. … But we will find out soon, I suspect."

Miles away, in the confines of her sweet smelling room, with its Goth décor and its intermingled crucifixes, Misa Amane excitedly composed her reply to Kira.

**_xxx_**

_**Authors Note:**_ So… it's been forever. Years, even. No excuses. And honestly, I can only promise that I'll **try** to get you guys the next chapter. I'm thinking about a few different things though, and taking my availability to write this into serious thought. I may be eliciting help. A few have reached out, and I've been reluctant to accept because this is _my_ baby… but, with the outpouring of encouragement and pleas for this to continue, I don't know if I'll be able to keep you all from getting the steady updates you deserve, if not from me than- **perhaps**- from another source. We'll see. Until then - I will promise to keep working on this. And I certainly won't let as much time lapse before another update, one way or another.

There was artwork done as well! I don't know if it's still around (I hope so, it was amazing!) but it was on Deviant Art under user Okaiedi, and depicted L and Naomi's first real hug. Wonderful! Thanks to I Dream Of Utopia for all her advice and the beautiful artwork!

Also thanks to Hello-Sweetie 19 and Goozer, I'll be in touch- I promise. And to everyone else who sent an e-mail or left a review. You have made me fell both elated by your enthusiasm and as equally guilty for leaving this abandoned for so long.

I hope this satisfies for now. As always, ignore spelling errors and such. I'll get to them later. For now, sleep.


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